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S1MFORD-VNIVHRSI1Y"  OBRA. 


f 


I 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


MIKTBO  BY  BALLAWTYM*  AMP  COUTAVV 

■r>iM>irir.>i  and  iohdom 


History  of  Advertising 


iFrom  tte  earliest  QDunes. 


ILLUSTRATED  BY  ANECDOTBS.  CURIOUH  SPRCJMENS.  AND 
aiOCRAPHlCAL  NOTES^ 


^^^^  By 

HENRY    SAMPSON.                   1 

J 

P 

\    1 

^^^^K^^     WrrH   ILLUBTRATIONB   AND   f 

FACSIMILES.                                   ^1 

^H 

lonboit: 

■ 

HcHATTO 

AND 

WINDUS. 
1874. 

PICCADILLY. 

A 

234783 


•'r    •-• 


«       •  •    ■ 


% 


TO 

The  Right  Honousable 

THOMAS  MILNER  GIBSON, 

In  humule  re(X)GNITi<»i  of  the  Important  Services 

IIK  MAS  RENDERKU  TO  THE  CAUSE  OF 

ADVERTISING, 
AS  wLi.L  AS  TO  Journalism  generally, 

IS  RhSl'ECTFfLLY  DHjICAI  KI», 

i:y 
His  obedient  Servant, 

TriE  ACTIIOR. 


PREFACE. 

T  N  presenting  the  following  humble  attempt  at  his- 
-■■  tory-writing  to  the  reader,  I  am  selfish  enough 
to  admit  a  preference  for  his  tender  mercy  rather 
than  for  his  critical  judgment.  I  would  ask  him  to 
remember  that  there  are  many  almost  insurmount- 
able difficulties  to  be  faced  in  the  accomplishment  of 
a  work  like  this,  and  a  narrowed  space  adds  to  rather 
than  diminishes  from  their  antagonistic  power. 

When  the  work  was  first  proposed  to  me,  it  was 
imagined  that  the  subject  could  be  fully  disposed 
of  in  less  than  five  hundred  pages.  I  have  already 
gone  considerably  over  that  number,  and  feel  that 
the  charge  of  incompleteness  may  still  be  brought 
against  the  book.  But  I  also  feel  that  if  I  had  ex- 
tended it  to  five  thousand  pages,  the  charge  could 
still  have  been  made,  for  with  such  a  subject  actual 
exhaustion  cannot  be  expected ;  and  so,  despite  the 
great  quantity  of  unused  material  I  have  yet  by  mo, 
I  must  rest  satisfied  with  what  I  have  done.  I  trust 
the  reader  will  be  satisfied  also. 


PREFACE. 


I 


Almost  ever>'body  has  in  the  course  of  his  lifetime 
discovered  some  sort  of  a  pet  advertisement  without 
which  he  considers  no  collection  can  be  complete. 
During  the  progress  of  this  **  history"  I  have  re- 
ceived many  hundreds  such — have  received  sufHctent, 
with  accompanying  notes,  to  fill  a  bigger  volume 
than  this — and  I  can  therefore  imagine  every  fresh 
reader  turning  to  look  for  his  favourite,  and,  in  the 
event  of  his  finding  it  not,  condemning  the  book  un- 
conditionally. I  hope  that  in  the  event  of  a  recon- 
sideration some  worthy  representative  will  be  found 
occupying  the  missing  one's  place.  In  like  manner, 
and  judging  by  my  own  friends*  observations,  I  have 
found  that  almost  every  one  would  have  treated  the 
"history"  differently,  not  only  from  my  way  but  from 
each  other's.  Every  one  would  have  done  some- 
thing wonderful  with  such  a  wonderful  subject.  It 
will  not  be  out  of  place  perhaps,  therefore,  to  ask  the 
reader  to  think,  that  because  the  system  adopted  has 
not  been  that  which  would  have  suggested  itself  to 
him,  it  is  not  necessarily  the  wrong  one  after  all. 

I  have  received  much  assistance  during  the  time  I 
have  been  at  work,  in  the  way  of  hints  and  observa- 
tions. For  those  which  I  have  accepted,  as  well  as 
for  those  I  have  been  compelled  to  reject,  I  hereby 
tender  my  heartfelt  tlianks.  Little  in  the  way  of  so- 
called  statistics  of  modern  advertisers  will  be  found 


PREFACE.  vii 

in  the  book,  as  I  fancy  it  is  better  to  be  silent  than 
to  make  untrustworthy  statements ;  and  this  remark 
will  particularly  apply  to  the  amounts  of  annual 
outlay  generally  published  in  connection  with  the 
names  of  large  advertising  firms.  My  own  ex- 
perience is  that  the  firms  or  their  managers  are  not 
aware  of  the  exact  sums  expended  by  them,  or,  if 
they  are,  do  not  feel  inclined  to  tell  in  anything  but 
the  vaguest  manner.  Another  observation  I  have 
made  is,  that  extensive  advertising  \s  likely  to  result 
in  a  desire  for  the  exaggeration  of  facts — at  all 
events,  so  far  as  the  individual  advertisers  themselves 
are  concerned.  That  any  firm,  tradesmen,  manufac- 
turers, agents,  quacks,  perfumers,  patentees,  or  what- 
ever they  may  be,  pay  a  settled  annual  sum,  no  more 
and  no  less,  for  advertising,  I  do  not  believe  now, 
whatever  I  may  have  done  before  commencing  my 
inquiries. 

I  have  endeavoured  as  much  as  possible,  and 
wherever  practicable,  to  make  the  advertisements 
tell  their  own  story.  At  the  same  time  I  have  tried 
hard  to  prevent  waste  of  space,  and  so  far  have, 
if  in  no  other  way,  succeeded.  This  is  but  little 
merit  to  claim,  and  if  lam  allowed  that,  I  shall  be 
satisfied.  Also,  if  my  endeavour  should  lead  to  a 
development  of  that  laudable  spirit  of  emulation  so 
apparent    nowadays   after  the    ice  has    been   once 


PREFACE. 

broken,  I  shall  be  happy  to  supply  any  fresh  adven- 
turer with  copious  material  which  has  grown  up 
during- the  process  of  this  "history,"  and  which  has 
been  omitted  only  Uirough  lack  of  room.  As  far  as 
my  judgment  has  allowed  me,  I  have  selected  what 
appeared  best ;  other  tastes  might  lead  to  other  re- 
sults. With  this  I  will  take  leave  of  a  somewhat 
unpleasant  and  apparently  egotistical  task ;  and  in 
doing  so  beg  to  say  that  I  trust  to  the  reader's  kind- 
Iness,  and  hope  he  will  overlook  the  blemishes  of  a 
hurried  and  certainly  an  unpretentious  work*  which 
may,  however,  be  found  to  contain  a  little  amusement 
and  some  amount  of  inforrhation. 


London,  Sfptmbar  1S74. 


H.  S. 

I 


CONTENTS. 


CRAP. 

I.   INTRODUCTORY  —  NEWSPAPERS    AND    NEWSPAPER    AD 
VERTISING         ..... 

XI.   INTRODUCTORY — STREET  AND  GENERAL  AIA'ERTISING 

in.  ANCIENT  FORMS  OF  ADVERTISING 

IV.    MEDT..EVAL  AND  OTHER  VARIETIES  OF  AIA'ERTISING 

V.  NEWSPAPER    ADVERTISING   FORESHADOWED — ITS    EAU 

LIEST  USE — HOUGHTON'S  LESSUNS    . 

VI.  DEVELOPMENT  OF  ADVERTISING  . 

Vn.    CONCLUSION  OF  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY 
VIIL    EARLY  PART  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY 
IX.    MIDDLE  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY 
X.    THE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED 
XI.    CURIOUS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS 
XIL   SWINDLES  AND  HOAXES     .... 
XIH.   THE  GREAT  BOTTLE-TRICK  S\VINt>LE 
XIV.    QUACKS  AND  IMPOSTORS  .  .  .  • 


19 

33 
43 

61 

94 
120 
142 


240 
304 
3OS 
373 


C0N7ENTS. 


XV,    GRAHAM  ANP  tllS  CELESTIAL  BED 
XVr.    LOTTERIES  AND  LUTTEUV  INSURANCE     . 

XVir.    M.\THIM<JMAL  ADVERTISEMENTS  AND  AGENCtEii 

IVin.    HANDBILLS,  INSCRIPTIONS,  ETC 
XIX.    AMKklCAN  ANItCOLOSUL  ADVI^RTISEMENTS 
XX.   AI'VtKbAKIA  .... 


5^7 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


CHAPTER    L 

INTRODUCTORY — NEWSPAPERS  AND  NEWSPAPER 

ADVERTISING, 


IT  must  be  patent  to  erery  one  who  takes  the  least  interest 
in  the  subject,  that  the  study  of  so  im(>ortant  a  branch 
of  our  present  system  of  commerce  as  advertising,  with  its 
rise  and  growth,  cannot  fail  to  be  full  of  interest  Indeed 
it  is  highly  suggestive  of  amusement,  as  a  reference  to  any 
of  our  old  newspapers,  full  as  they  are  of  quaint  announce- 
ments, untrammelled  by  the  squcamishness  of  the  present 
age,  will  show.  Advertising  has,  of  course,  within  the  last 
fifty  years,  developed  entirely  new  courses,  and  has  become 
an  institution  differing  much  from  the  arrangement  in 
whicli,  so  far  as  our  references  show,  it  first  appeared  in 
this  country ;  its  growth  has  been  attended  by  an  almost 
entire  revulsion  of  mode,  and  where  we  now  gel  long  or  short 
announcements  by  the  hundred,  dictated  by  a  spirit  of  busi- 
ness, our  fathers  received  statements  couched  in  a  style  of 
pure  romance,  which  fully  compensated  for  their  compara- 
tively meagre  proportions.  Of  course,  even  in  the  present 
day,  and  in  the  most  pure-minded  papers,  ignorance,  intoler- 


JfjirV^y  OF  AD  VERTlSmC. 

ance,  and  /iyp^iVy  exhibit  themselves  frequently,  often  to  the 
arausemeBt,.*but  still  more  often  to  the  annoyance  and  dis- 
gust, d£  thinkers  ;  but  in  the  good  old  days,  when  a  spade 
W^*4  spade,  and  when  people  did  not  seek  to  gloss  over 
.  tfieil"  weaknesses  a.nd  frivolities,  as  they  do  now,  by  a  pre- 
tence of  virtue  and  coldness,  which,  after  all,  imposes  only 
on  the  weak  and  credulous,  advertisements  gave  a  reaj 
insight  into  the  life  of  the  people  ;  and  so,  in  the  hope  that 
our  researches  will  tend  to  dispel  some  of  the  mists  which 
still  hang  over  the  sayings  and  doings  of  folk  who  lived  up 
to  comparatively  modem  days,  we  present  this  work  to  the 
curious  reader. 

It  is  generally  assumed — though  the  assumption  has  no 
ground  for  existence  beyond  that  so  common  amongst  US| 
that  nothing  exists  of  which  we  are  ignorant — that  advertise- 
ments are  of  comparatively  modem  origia  This  idea  has 
probably  been  fostered  in  the  public  mind  by  the  fact  that 
so  little  trouble  has  ever  been  taken  by  encyclopaedists  to 
discover  anything  about  them  ;  and  as  time  begets  diffi- 
culties in  research,  we  are  almost  driven  to  regard  the  first 
advertisement  with  which  we  are  acquainted  as  the  actual 
inaugurator  of  a  system  which  now  has  hardly  any  bounds. 
That  this  is  wrong  will  be  shown  most  conclusively,  and 
even  so  far  evidence  is  given  by  the  statement,  made  by 
Smith  and  others,  that  advertisements  were  published  in 
Greece  and  Rome  in  reference  to  the  gladiatorial  exhibi- 
tions, so  important  a  feature  of  the  ancient  days  of  those 
once  great  countries.  That  these  advertisements  look  the 
form  of  what  is  now  generally  known  as  "billing,"  seems 
most  probable,  and  Rome  must  have  often  looked  like  a 
modern  country  town  when  the  advent  of  a  c'u:cu£  or  other 
travelling  company  is  first  made  known. 

The  first  newspaper  supposed  to  have  been  published  iaj 
England  appeared  in  the  reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth  during  the 
Spanish  Armada  panic.  This  journal  was  called  the  En^iski 
Mtratrsf,  and  was  by  authority  "imprinted  at  London  h\ 


^ 


NEWSPAFERS,  ETC, 


Christopher  Barker,  Her  Highnesses  printer,  1583."  This 
paper  was  said  to  be  started  for  the  prevention  of  the  fulmina- 
tion  of  false  reports,  but  it  was  more  like  a  succession  of 
extraordinary  gazettes,  and  had  by  no  means  the  appearance 
of  a  regular  journal,  as  we  understand  the  term.  It  was  pro- 
moted by  Burleigh,  and  used  by  him  to  soothe,  inform,  or 
exasperate  the  people  as  occasion  required.*  Periodicals 
and  papers  really  first  came  into  general  use  during  the 
civil  wars  in  the  reign  of  Charles  I.,  and  in  the  time  of  the 
Commonwealth  ;  in  fact,  each  party  had  its  organs,  to  dis- 
scniin^te  sentiments  of  loyalty,  or  to  foster  a  spirit  of 
resistance  against  the  inroads  of  power.f     The  country  was 


*  This  paj>cr  seems  to  have  been  an  imposttire,  whicb,  believed  in 
al  the  time,  has  been  comparatively  recently  detected.  A  writer  in  the 
Quartnfy  Knnrut,  June  1855,  says,  "The  En^isk  Mercuric  of  1588 
[QT-  '5^3l>  which  professes  to  bave  been  published  during  those 
momentous  days  when  the  Spanish  Annada  was  hovering  and  wailing 
to  pounce  upon  our  southern  shores,  contains  amongst  its  items  of 
news  three  or  four  book  advertisements,  and  these  woutJ  undoubtedly 
have  been  the  first  pul  forth  in  Englamd,  were  that  newspaper  genuine. 
Mr  Watts,  of  the  Briiikh  Xu^eum,  has,  however,  proved  that  the 
•evcrai  numlKrs  of  this  journal  to  be  found  in  our  national  library  are 
froM  forgeries  ;  and,  indeed,  the  most  inexperienced  eye  in  such  matters 
can  e&sily  see  that  neither  their  type,  paper,  spelling,  nor  composition 
axe  mach  more  than  one  instead  of  upwards  of  two  centuries  and  a 
half  old.'*  Haydn  also  says,  "Some  copies  of  a  publication  are  in 
existence  called  the  Kngluk  Mercury,  professing  to  come  out  umler  tlic 
aothoritj  of  Queen  Elizabeth  in  158S,  the  period  of  the  Spanish  An> 
aktid*.  The  researches  of  Mr  J.  Watts,  of  the  British  Muwium,  have 
proved  these  to  be  forgeries,  executed  about,  1766.  The  full  title  of 
No.  50  is  '  7Tt£  English  Mtrcurig^  published  by  authoritic,  for  llie  pre> 
Tenlion  of  false  reports,  imprinted  by  Christopher  Barker,  Her  High- 
nesses printer.  No.  50/  It  describes  the  Spanish  Armada,  giving  '  A 
jottmal  of  what  passed  since  the  31st  of  this  niuntli,  between  Her 
Majestie's  fleet  and  that  of  Spayne,  uansmilted  by  the  Lord  Uighe 
Admiral  to  the  Lordes  of  Council.'  " 

_*  Quarterly  mentions  a  paper  which  appeared  late  in  the  reigti 

.  I,  :  "  The  /fft'^^AVwj,  published  in  London  in  1622,  was  the 

&M  pabtication  which  answered  to  this  description ;   it  contained. 


4  ff/STOR  Y  or  AD  VEJi  TISING.  j 

accordingly  overflowed  with  tracts  of  every  size  and  oia 
various  denominations,  many  of  them  displaying  grea^^j 
courage,  and  being  written  with  uncommon  ability.  Mmn 
a/ry  vrsiS  the  prevailing  title,  generally  qualified  with  somf  9 

»  epithet ;  and  the  quaintness  peculiar  to  the  age  is  curiou5iy.J 
exemplified  in  the  names  of  some  of  the  news-booVs,  obA 
they  were  called  :  the  Dutch  Spye^  the  Scots  Doi%  the  jRw-lS 
liament   Kiic^   the  Screech    Owie^   and    the   Parliamentary' 
Screech   Owle^  being  instances  in  point.     The  list  of  M€r*\ 

t  curies  is  almost  too  full  for  publication.  There  was  Mer^y^ 
atritis  Achcranticus,  which  brought  tidings  weekly  from  tbd* 
infernal  regions  j  there  was  Mercurius  Democn'tus,  whose'' 
information  was  supposed  to  be  derived  from  the  moon;!, 
and  among  oihtv  Mercuries  there  was  the  Mercurius Masiix^Xy 
whose  mission  was  to  criticise  all  its  namesakes.     It  was 

■  not,  however,  until  the  reign  of  Queen  Anne  that  a  daily 
paper  existed  in  London — this  was  the  Daily  Courantf 
which  occupied  the  field  alone  for  a  long  period,  but 
which  ultimately  found  two  rivals  in  the  Daily  Post  anc 

I  J  the  Daily  Jourmil^  the  three  being  simultaneously  publishec 
I  in  1734.  This  state  of  things  continued  with  very  little 
change  during  the  reign  of  George  L,  but  publications  o; 
every  kind  increased  abundantly  during  the  reign  of  his 
successor.  The  number  of  newspapers  annually  sold  in 
England,  according  to  an  average  of  three  years  endinj 

■  with  1753,  was  7,411,757;  in  1760  it  amounted  to  9,464,790 
I  in   1767  it  rose  to  11,300,980;  in  1790  it  was  as  high  as 
'    *4»035»636;  and  in  1792  it  amounted  to  15,005,760.     Al 

this  time  advertising  was  a  growing  art,  and  advertisements 
were  beginning  to  make  themselves  manifest  as  the  maia 


however,  only  a  few  scraps  of  foreign  intelligence,  and  was  quite  de^ 

tulc  of  advertisements."  And  Oien,  as  if  to  prove  what  has  been  al 

slated  by  (he  Encyclopedia  Britanntca,  the  writer  goes  on  to  say,  "  Tb 

H    terrible  contest  of  the  succeeding  reign  was  the  hotbed  which  fo: 

H  the  press  of  this  country  into  sudden  life  and  extraordinary  vigour.' 


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support  and  chief  source  of  profit  of  newspapers,  as  well  as 
the  moM  natural  chaonel  of  communication  between  the 
buyers  and  sellers,  the  needing  and  supplying  members  of 
A  vast  community. 

The  victories  of  Cromwell  gave  Scotland  her  first  news- 
pa.peT.  This  was  called  the  Mercurius  PoliticuSy  and  ap- 
peared at  Leith  in  October  1653  ;  but  it  was  in  November 
1654  transferred  to  Edinburgh,  where  it  was  continued 
until  the  iilh  April  1660,  when  it  was  rechristened,  and 
appeared  as  the  Mercurius  Pub/icus,  This  paper  was  but 
%  reprint,  for  the  informatiou  of  the  English  soldiers,  of  a 
London  publication.  But  a  newspaper  of  native  manu- 
dctitre,  we  are  told  by  a  contemporary  writer,  soon  made 
its  appearance  under  the  title  of  Mercurius  CaUdonins, 
The  first  number  of  this  was  published  at  Edinburgh  on  the 
31st  December  1660,  and  comprised,  as  its  title  sets  forth, 
**  the  affairs  in  agitation  in  Scotland,  with  a  summary  of 
foreign  intelligence."  The  publication,  however,  extended 
to  DO  more  than  ten  numbers,  which,  it  is  said  by 
Chambers,  **  were  very  loyal,  very  illiterate,  and  very 
aficcted."  After  the  Revolution  the  custom  was  still  10 
reprint  in  Scotland  the  papers  published  in  London,  an 
economic  way  of  doing  business,  which  savours  much  of 
the  proverbial  thrift  peculiar  to  the  Land  o'  Cakes.  In 
February  1699  the  Edinbttrgh  GaseUCy  the  first  original 
Scotch  newspaper  or  periodical,  was  published  by  James 
Watson,  author  of  a  *'  History  of  Printing ; "  but  he,  after 
]>roducing  forty  numbers,  transferred  it  to  a  Mr  John  Reid, 
whose  son  continued  to  print  the  paper  till  even  after  the 
Union.  In  February  1705,  Watson,  who  seems  to  have 
been  what  would  now  be  called  a  promoter  of  newspapers, 
established  the  Edinburgh  Courant^  but  relinquished  it  after 
the  publication  of  fifty-five  numbers,  and  in  September 
1706  commenced  the  Scots  Couranf^  with  which  he  re- 
mained connected  until  about  1718.  To  these  papers  were 
added  in  October   1708  the  Edinburgh  Flyhts  Post;  in 


HISTORY  OF  ADVEHTISINC. 


August  1709  the  Scots  Postman^  "  printed  by  David  "Fecime 
for  John  Moncur;"  and  in  March  17 10  the  North  Tatier^ 
"printed  by  John  Rcid  for  Samuel  Colvil."  In  1715  the 
foundation  was  laid  of  the  present  splendid  Glasgow  press 
by  the  establishment  of  the  Courant^  but  this  did  not  in 
any  way  affect  the  publications  in  tlie  then  far  more  im- 
portant town  of  Edinburgh.  In  March  1714  Robert 
Brown  commenced  the  Edinburgh  Gazette  or  Scots  Posttnan^ 
which  was  published  twice  a  week  ;  and  in  December  17 18 
the  Town  Council  gave  an  exclusive  privilege  to  James 
M'Ewcn  to  publish  three  times  a  week  the  Edinburgh 
Evening  Courani^  upon  condition,  however,  that  before 
publication  "  the  said  James  should  give  ane  coppie  of  his 
print  to  the  magistrates."  This  journal  is  still  published, 
and  it  is  but  fair  to  assume  that  the  original  stipulation  is 
yet  complied  with.  The  Caledonian  Mercury  followed  the 
Coutnni  on  the  28th  of  April  1720,  and  was,  like  its  fore- 
nmner,  a  tri-weekly  organ.  In  these,  as  well  as  in  those 
wc  have  mentioned,  advertisements  slowly  but  gradually 
and  surely  began  to  make  their  appearance,  and,  as  the 
sequel  proves,  to  show  their  value. 

It  is  stated  by  several  writers  that  the  earliest  Eng- 
lish provincial  newspaper  is  believed  to  be  the  Nor- 
wich Postman^  which  was  published  in  1706  at  the 
price  of  a  penny,  and  which  bore  the  quaint  statement, 
that  a  halfpenny  would  not  be  refused.  Newspaper  pro- 
prietors, publishers,  and  editors  were  then  evidently,  so 
far  as  Norwich  is  concerned,  less  strong  than  they  are  now 
in  their  own  conceit,  and  in  their  belief  in  the  press  as 
an  org.Tn  of  great  power  This  Postman  was  followed  in 
1714  by  the  Nonvich  Courant  or  Weekly  Packet.  York 
and  Leeds  followed  in  1720,  Manchester  in  1730,  and 
Oxford  in  1740.  It  was  not,  however,  until  advertising 
became  an  important  branch  of  commercial  speculation 
that  the  provincial  press  began  in  any  way  to  flourish. 
Now  the  journals  published  in  our  largest  country  towns 


NEWSPAPERS,  ETC,  7 

command  extensive  circulations,  and  are  regarded  by 
many  advertising  agents,  whose  opinions  are  fairly  worth 
taking,  as  being  much  more  remunerative  media  than  our 
best  London  papers.  For  certain  purposes,  and  under 
certain  circumstances,  the  same  may  be  said  of  colonial  news- 
papers, which  have,  of  course,  grown  up  with  the  colonies 
in  which  they  are  published  ;  for  it  must  be  always  borne  in 
mind  thai  the  essence  of  advertising  is  to  place  your  state- 
ment where  it  is  most  likely  to  be  seen  by  those  most  inter- 
ested in  ii,  and  so  a  newspaper  with  a  very  limited  supply 
of  readers  indeed  is  often  more  valuable  to  the  advertiser 
of  peculiar  wares  or  wants  than  one  with  **  the  largest 
circulation  in  the  world,"  if  that  circulation  does  not  reach 
the  class  of  readers  most  affected  by  those  who  pay  for 
publicity.  It  would  seem,  however,  that  the  largest  class 
of  advertisers,  the  general  public,  who  employ  no  agents, 
and  who  consider  a  large  sale  everything  that  is  necessary, 
ignore  the  argument  of  the  true  expert,  and  lose  sight  of 
the  fact  that,  no  matter  how  extensive  a  circulation  may  be, 
il  is  intrinsically  useless  unless  flowing  through  the  channel 
which  is  fairly  likely  to  effect  the  purpose  for  which  the 
advertisement  is  inserted.  It  is  customary  to  see  a  sheet, 
detached  from  the  paper  with  which  it  is  issued,  full  of 
advertisements,  which  are,  of  course,  unread  by  all  but  those 
who  are  professedly  readers  of  public  announcements,  and 
who  are  also,  of  course,  not  only  in  a  decided  minority, 
but  cot  at  all  the  people  to  whom  the  notices  are  gene- 
rally directed.  The  smallest  modicum  of  thought  will 
show  how  grievous  is  the  error  which  leads  to  such  a  result, 
and  how  much  belter  it  is  to  regard  actual  circulation  but 
as  so  much  evidence  as  to  the  value  of  an  advertisement 

ly,  and  not  as  a  whole,  sole,  and  complete  qualification. 

It  In  any  incautious  way  do  those  who  arc  most  qualified 
judge  of  value  for  money  act  Turn  to  any  paper  of 
repute,  and  it  will  be  seen  that  the  professional  adveniser, 
the  theatrical  manager,  the  publisher,  the  auctioneer,  and 


8 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


the  others  whom  constant  practice  has  made  wary,  lay  out 
their  money  on  quite  a  different  principle  from  that  of  the 
casual  advertiser.  They  have  learned  their  lesson,  and  if , 
they  pay  extra  for  position  or  insertion,  ihcy  know  that, 
their  outlay  is  remunerative ;  whereas,  if  it  were  not  governed 
by  caution  and  system,  it  would  be  simply  ruinous.  In  fact| 
advertising  is  a  most  expensive  luxury  if  not  properly  regu- 
lated, and  a  most  valuable  adjunct  when  coolness  and  cal- 
culation are  brought  to  bear  upon  it  as  accessories. 

The  heavy  duties  originally  imposed  upon  newspapers, 
both  on  them  and  their  advertisements,  were  at  first  a  con- 
siderable check  to  the  number  of  notices  appearing  in  them. 
For,  in  the  first  place,  the  high  price  of  the  papers  narrowed 
the  limits  of  their  application ;  ami,  in  the  second,  the  extra 
charge  on  the  advertisements  made  them  above  the  reach 
of  almost  all  but  those  who  were  themselves  possessed  of  ^ 
means,  or  whose  business  it  was  to  pander  to  the  unholy 
and  libidinous  desires  of  the  wealthy.  This,  we  fancy,  will 
be  extensively  proved  by  a  reference  to  the  following  pages; 
for  while  it  is  our  endeavour  to  keep  from  this  book  all 
really  objectionable  items,  we  are  desirous  that  it  shall  place 
before  the  reader  a  true  picture  of  the  times  in  which  the 
advertisements  appeared  j  and  we  are  not  to  be  checked  in 
our  duty  by  any  false  delicacy,  or  turned  from  the  true 
course  by  any  squeamishness,  which,  unfortunately  for  us  in 
these  days,  but  encourages  the  vices  it  attempts  to  ignore. 

The  stamp  duty  on  newspapers  was  first  imposed  in  17 13, 
and  was  one  halfpenny  for  half  a  sheet  or  less,  and  one 
penny  "  if  larger  than  half  a  sheet  and  not  exceeding  a 
whole  sheet/'  This  duty  was  increased  a  halfpenny  by  an 
Act  of  Parliament,  30  Geo.  II.  c  19 ;  and  by  another  Act, 
16  Geo.  III.  c.  34,  another  halfpenny  was  added  to  the] 
tax.  This  not  being  considered  sufficient,  a  further  addition] 
of  a  halfpenny  was  made  (29  Geo.  III.  c.  50),  and  in  th< 
thirt>'-seventh  year  of  the  same  wise  monarch's  reign  (c. 
three-halfpence  more  was  all  at  once  placed  to  die  d( 


of  newspaper  readers,  which  brought  the  siim  total  of  the 
duty  up  to  fourpence.  An  Act  of  6  &  7  Will.  IV.  c  76 
reduced  this  duty  to  one  penny,  with  the  provisoj  however, 
that  when  the  sheet  contained  1550  superficial  inches  on 
cither  side,  an  extra  halfpenny  was  to  be  paid,  and  when  it 
ntained  2295,  an  extra  penny.  An  additional  halfpenny 
also  charged  on  a  supplement,  which  may  be  regarded, 
When  the  use  of  supplements  in  the  present  day  is  taken 
into  consideration,  as  an  indirect  tax  on  advertisements. 
In  1855,  by  an  Act  18  &  19  Vict  c.  27,  this  stamp  duty 
was  abolished,  and  immediately  an  immense  number  of 
newspapers  started  into  existence,  most  of  which,  however, 
obtained  but  a  most  ephemeral  being,  and  died  away, 
leaving  no  sign,  'inhere  are,  Iioweverj  a  large  number  of 
and  useful  papers  still  flourishing,  which  would  never 
re  been  published  but  for  the  repeal  of  the  newspaper 
mp  duty.  To  such  repeal  many  rich  men  owe  their 
sperity,  while  to  the  same  source  may  now  be  ascribed 
poverty  of  numbers  who  were  once  affluent.  At  this 
time,  of  course,  the  old  papers  also  reduced  their  rates,  and 
om  thence  has  grown  a  system  of  newspaper  reading  and 
ivcrlising  which  twenty  years  ago  could  hardly  have  been 
ginctl.  Up  to  the  repeal  of  the  stamp  duly  few  people 
bought  newspapers  for  themselves,  and  many  newsvendors* 
ief  duty  was  to  lend  the  Tim^s  out  for  a  penny  per  hour, 
■hile  a  second  or  third  day's  newspaper  was  considered 
quite  a  luxury  by  those  whom  business  or  habit  compelled 
to  stay  at  home,  and  therefore  who  were  unable  to  glance 
over  the  news — generally  while  some  impatient  person  was 
scowlingly  waiting  his  turn—at  the  tavern  bar  or  the  coffee- 
house. Now  aUnost  every  one  buys  a  penny  paper  for 
himself,  and  with  the  increase  in  the  circulation  of  news- 
pers  has,  in  proportionate  ratio,  gone  on  the  increase  in 
e  demand  for  advertisements.  The  supply  has,  as  every 
One  knows,  been  in  no  way  short  of  the  demand.  The 
repeal  of  the  paper  duty  in  1861  also  affected  newspapers 


mSTORV  OF  ADVJERTISLVG. 

much,  though  naturally  in  a  smaller  degree  than  the  aboli- 
tion of  the  compulsory  stamp.  Still  the  effect  on  both  the 
papers  and  their  advertisements — especially  as  concerns 
those  journals  which  were  enabled  to  still  farther  reduce 
their  raits — was  considerable,  and  deserves  to  be  noted. 
In  September  1870  the  compulsory  stamps  which  had  been 
retained  for  postal  purposes,  was  abolished,  and  on  the  1st 
of  October  papers  were  first  sent  by  post  with  a  halfpenny 
stamp  affixed  on  the  wrappers,  and  not  on  the  journals 
themselves. 

But  it  was  to  the  abolition  of  the  impost  upon  advertise- 
ments that  their  present  great  demand  and  importance  can 
be  most  directly  traced.  For  many  years  a  very  heavy  tax 
was  charged  upon  every  notice  published  in  a  paper  and 
paid  for,  until  1833  no  less  than  js.  6d.  being  chargeable 
upon  each  advertisement  inserted,  no  matter  what  its  length 
or  subject-matter.  People  then,  we  should  imagine — in  fact, 
as  application  to  ihe  papers  of  that  time  proves — were  not  so 
fond  of  cutting  a  long  advertisement  into  short  and  separate 
pieces  as  they  arc  now,  for  every  cut-off  rule  then  meant  a 
charge  of  3s.  6d.  In  1832,  the  last  year  of  this  charge,  the 
produce  of  this  branch  of  the  revenue  in  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland  amounted  to  ;£'i7o,649.  Fancy  what  the  returns 
would  be  if  3s.  6d.  were  charged  on  every  advertisement 
published  throughout  the  United  Kingdom  for  the  year 
ending  December  31,  1873  !  It  seems  almost  too  great  a 
sum  for  calculation.  There  is  no  doubt,  however,  that 
many  people  would  be  very  glad  to  do  the  figures  for  a 
very  slight  percentage  on  the  returns,  which  would  be 
fabulous,  and  which  would,  if  properly  calculated,  amaze 
many  of  those  laiuiafores  temporis  acti  who,  without  reason  or 
provocation,  are  always  deploring  the  decay  of  ever^'thing, 
and  who  would  unhesitatingly  affirm  in  their  ignorance  that 
even  newspapers  and  newspaper  advertisements  have  dete- 
riorated in  tone  and  quantity  since  the  good  old  times,  of 
which  they  prove  they  know  nothing  by  their  persistent 


NEWSfAPERS,  ETC, 


II 


pcaises.  Certainly  if  they  did  say  this,  they  would  not  be 
much  more  wrong  than  they  are  generally  when  lamenting 
over  a  period  which,  could  it  but  return,  they  would  be, 
as  a  rule,  the  very  first  to  object  to.  Of  the  sum  of 
;f  170,649  just  referred  to,  about  £121,^^6^  or  three-fourths 
of  the  whole,  may  be  regarded  as  being  drawn  from  news- 
papers, and  the  other  fourth  from  periodical  publications. 
In  1837,  four  years  after  the  reduced  charge  of  is.  6d.  for 
each  advertisement  had  become  law,  a  table  was  compiled 
from  the  detailed  returns  of  the  first  six  months.  As  it 
will  doubtless  prove  interesting  to  those  who  take  an  interest 
in  the  growth  and  increase  of  newspapers,  as  well  as  in  those 
of  advertisements,  we  append  it : — 


London  Papers, 

English  Provincial  Papers^ 

Welsh  Papers. 

Edinburgh  Papers, 

Scotch  Provincial  Papers, 

Dublin  Papers,   

Irish  Provincial  Papers,... 

Total  in  Great  Britain 


9315,100,197 


217, 
10! 

46 
21 
60; 


7,290,452 

190^955 

768,071 

1,121,658 

i.493»838 
1,049,358 


and  Inland, [  j  460,27,014,529 


292.033 

317,474 

6,499 

20,579 

45,37» 
45,848 
41,284 


i 


2  = 


;^2  1,902  9 

23,810  II 

487  6 

1.543  9 

3,402  16 

2,292  8 

2,064  4 


769,088  ;^55.503    5    2 


The  reduction  to  which  we  have  alluded  was  followed  in 
1853  by  the  total  abolition  of  the  advertisement  duty,  the 
effect  of  which  can  be  best  appreciated  by  a  glance  at  the 
columns  of  any  daily  or  weekly  paper,  class  or  general, 
which  possesses  a  good  circulation. 

The  first  paper  published  in  Ireland  was  a  sheet  called 
Warranted  Tidings  from  Ireland^  and  this  appeared  during 


WSTOHV  OF  ADVERTISING, 

the  rebellion  of  1641  ]  but  the  first  Irish  newspaper  worthy 
of  the  name  was  the  Dublin  Navsletier^  commenced  in 
1685.  Puis  Occurrences,  a  Dublin  daily  paper,  originated  in 
1700,  was  continued  for  half  a  century,  and  was  followed  in 
1728  by  another  daily  paper,  Fauihtcr^s  Journal,  established 
by  one  George  Faulkner,  **  a  man  celebrated  for  the  good- 
ness of  his  heart  and  the  weakness  of  his  head."  The  oldest 
existing  Dublin  papers  are  Saunders  s  (originally  EsdaiUs) 
NeivsUiter,  begun  in  1744,  and  the  Freeman^ s  Journal,  insti- 
tuted under  the  title  of  the  Public  Register,  by  Dr  Lucas  in 
1755.  The  Limerick  Chronicle^  the  oldest  Irish  provincial 
newspaper,  dates  from  1768.  Ireland  has  now  nearly  150 
newspapers,  most  of  them  celebrated  for  the  energy  of 
their  language  and  the  extreme  fervour  of  their  political 
opinions.  Their  Conservatism  and  IJberalism  are  nearly 
equally  divided;  about  a  score  take  independent  views, 
and  nearly  fifty  completely  eschew  politics.  Irish  newspapers 
flourish  as  vehicles  for  advertisement,  and  their  tariffs  are  ^ 
about  on  a  par  with  those  of  our  leading  provincial  joumalst  H 

Colonial  newspapers  are  plentiful  and  good,  and  the  best 
of  them  filled  with  advertisements  of  a  general  character  at 
fairly  high  rates.  Those  papers  published  in  Melbourne 
are  perhaps  the  best  specimens  of  colonial  journalism,  and 
best  among  these  are  the  Argtis  and  Age  (daily),  and  the 
Australasian  and  Leader  (weekly).  In  fact,  we  have  hardly 
a  weekly  paper  in  London  that  is  fit  to  compare  on  all-roun4 
merits  with  the  last-named,  which  is  a  complete  representa- 
tive of  the  best  class  of  Australian  life,  and  contains  a  great  ^ 
show  of  advertisements,  which  do  much  to  enlighten  the  ■ 
reader  as  to  Antipodean  manners  and  customs. 

American  newspapers  are  of  course  plentiful,  and  their 
advertisements,  as  will  be  shown  during  the  progress  of] 
this   volume,   are   often   of   an   almost   unique   character- 
Throughout  the  United   States,  newspapers  start  up  likej 
rockets,  to  fall  like  sticks;  but  now  and  then  a  success  {%• 
made,  and  if  once  Fortune  is  secured  by  an  adveaturouj 


N£WSPAPE/iS,  ETC. 


n 


speculator,  she  is  rarely  indeed  allowed  to  escape.  The 
sj'stem  of  work  on  American  (U.S.)  journals  is  very  dif- 
ferent from  that  pursued  here,  cver>thing  on  sucii  estab- 
lishments as  those  of  the  N'nv  York  I/era/dy  the  Trihwr, 
and  the  Times,  being  sacrificed  to  news.  This  is  more 
paiticulaily  the  case  with  regard  to  the  HeraU,  which  has 
an  immense  circulation  and  great  numbers  of  highly-priced 
advertisements,  most  of  which  are  unfortunately  regarded 
more  in  connection  with  the  amount  of  money  they  produce 
lo  the  proprietor  than  in  reference  to  any  effect,  moral  or 
otherwise,  they  may  have  on  the  community.  It  is  the 
boost  of  American  journalists  that  they  have  papers  in 
obscure  towns  many  hundreds  of  miles  inland,  any  one  of 
which  contains  in  a  single  issue  as  much  news — news  in  the 
strictest  meaning  of  the  word — as  the  London  Times  di 
in  six.  And,  singular  as  it  may  at  first  sight  seem,  there  is' 
a  great  element  of  truth  about  the  statement,  the  telegraph 
being  used  in  the  States  with  a  liberaHty  which  would  drive 
an  English  proprietor  to  the  depths  of  black  despair.  The 
Associated  Telegraph  Company  seem  to  enjoy  a  monopoly, 
and  to  exercise  almost  unlimited  powers  \  and  not  long  ago 
they  almost  completely  ruined  a  journal  of  standing  in  Cali- 
Ibmia  by  refusing  to  transmit  inteUigence  to  it  because  its 
editor  and  proprietor  had  taken  exception  to  the  acts  of 
some  members  of  the  Associated  Telegraph  Company's  staff, 
and  It  was  only  on  receipt  of  a  most  abject  apology  from 
the  delinquents  that  the  most  autocratic  power  in  the  States 
decided  to  reinstate  the  paper  on  its  list.  This  Telegraph 
Company  charges  very  high  rates,  and  the  only  visible 
means  by  which  this  system  of  journalism  is  successfully 
carried  out  is  that  of  advertisements,  which  are  compara- 
tively more  plentiful  in  these  papers  than  in  the  English, 
and  are  charged  for  at  considerably  higher  rates.  Some  of 
these  newspapers,  notably  a  small  hebdomadal  called  the 
San  Francisco  Neu'slctttr,  go  in  for  a  deliberate  system  of 
blackmailing,  and  have  no  hesitation  in  acknowledging 


w 


H 


HISTORY  OF  ADFERTJShWG. 


^ 


that  their  pages,  not  the  advertisement  portions,  but  their 
editorial  columns,  are  to  be  bought  for  any  purpose — for 
the  promotion  of  blasphemy,  obscenity,  atheism,  or  any 
other  "  notion" — at  a  price  which  is  regulated  according  to 
the  editor's  opinion  of  the  former*s  value,  or  the  amount  of 
money  he  may  have  in  his  pocket  at  the  time.     This  is  a 
system  of  advertising  little  known,  happily,  in  this  "effete 
old  country,"  where  we  have  not  yet  learned  to  sacrifice  all 
that  should  be  dear  and  honourable  to  humanity — openly, 
at  all  events — for  a  money  consideration.     It  is  almost^ 
impossible  to  tell  the  number  of  papers  published  through^fl 
out  the   United  Stales  of  America,  each  individual  State^" 
being  hardly  aware  of  the  quantity  it  contains,  or  how 
many  have  been  born  and  died  within  the  current  twelve^  ^ 
months.     The  Americans  arc  a  truly  great  people,  but  thejrW 
have  not  yet  settled  down  into  a  regular  system,  so  far, 
at  all  events,  as  newspapers  and  advertisements  are  con*H 
cemed.*  ^ 

The  first  paper  published  in  America  is  said  to  have  been 
the  Boston  Newsletter^  which  made  its  appearance  in  1704. 
The  inhabitants  of  the  United  States  have  ever  been  wideiM 
awake  to  the  advantages  of  advertising,  but  it  would  seem 
that  the  Empire  City  is  not,  as  is  generally  supposed  here, 
first  in  rank,  so  far  as  the  speculative  powers  of  its  denizens 
go,  if  we  are  to  believe  the  New  Orleans  correspondent  of 
the  New  York  Tribune^  who  says  in  one  of  his  letters : 


•  In  1830  America  (U.S.),  whose  population  was  23,500,000,  sup- 
ported 800  newspapers,  50  of  these  being  daily ;  and  the  conjoined 
auDual  circulation  was  64,000,000.  Fifteen  years  later  these  figures 
were  consivierably  increased — nearly  doubled ;  but  since  the  develop- 
ment of  the  Pacihc  States  it  has  been  almost  impossible  to  tell  the 
number  of  papers  which  have  sprung  into  existence,  every  mining  camp 
and  every  village  bein^  possessed  of  its  organ,  some  of  which  have  died, 
and  some  of  whicli  are  still  nourishing.  A  professcl  and  apparent! 
competent  critic  assures  us  that  there  arc  quite  3000  newspapen  no 
in  the  States,  and  that  at  least  a  lithe  of  ibem  are  dailies. 


1 


NEWSPAPERS,  ETC. 


IS 


"The  merchants  of  New  Orleans  axe  far  more  liberal  in 
advertising  than  those  of  your  city,  and  it  is  they  alone 
which  support  most  of  our  papers.  One  firm  in  this  city, 
in  the  rirug  business,  expends  20,000  dollars  a  year  in  job 
printing,  and  30,000  dollars  in  advertising.  A  clothing 
finn  has  expended  50,000  dollars  in  advertising  in  six 
months.  Both  establishments  are  now  enjoying  the  lion's 
share  of  patronage,  and  are  determined  to  continue  such 
profits  and  investments.  A  corn  doctor  is  advertising  at 
over  10,000  dollars  a  month,  and  the  proprietor  of  a  'comer 
grocery'  on  the  outskirts  of  the  city  has  found  it  advan- 
tageous to  advertise  to  the  extent  of  7000  dollars  during 
the  past  winter." 

In  London  the  Times  and  Teligraph  absorb  the  lion's 
share  of  the  advertiser's  money.  The  former,  the  leading 
journal  of  the  day,  of  independent  politics  and  magnificent 
proportions,  stands  forth  first,  and,  to  use  a  sporting  phrase, 
has  no  second,  so  far  is  it  in  front  of  all  others  as  regards 
advertisements,  as  well  as  on  other  grounds.  An  average 
number  of  the  Tunts  contains  about  2500  advertisements, 
counting  between  every  cut-off  rule ;  and  the  receipts  in 
ihe  advertisement  department  are  said  to  be  about  ;£^iooo 
a  day,  or  8i  each.  A  number  of  the  Daily  Telegraph 
in  December  1873  contains  1444  advertisements  (also 
counting  between  every  cut-off  rule),  and  these  may  fairly 
be  calculated  to  produce  j£soo  or  thereabouts,  the  tariff 
being  throughout  little  less  than  that  of  the  Times ;  for  what 
it  lacks  in  power  and  influence  the  Telegraph  is  supposed 
to  make  up  in  circulation.  This  is  rather  a  change  for 
the  organ  of  Peterborowgh  Court,  which  little  more  than 
eighteen  years  ago  was  started  with  good  advertisements  to 
the  extent  of  seven  shiUings  and  sixpence.  The  Telegraph 
proprietors  do  not,  however,  get  all  the  profit  out  of  the 
advertisements,  for  in  its  early  and  struggling  days  they 
were  glad,  naturally,  to  close  with  advertisement  agents,  who 
agreed  to  take  so  many  columns  a  day  at  the  then  trade 


a 


16  mSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 

price,  and  who  now  have  a  vast  deal  the  best  of  the  bargai 
To  such  lucky  accidents,  which  occur  often  in  the  newspa 
world,  are  due  the  happy  positions  of  some  men,  who  li 
upon  the  profits  accruing  from  their  columns,  and  ride  i 
neat  broughams,  oblivious  of  the  days  when  they  went  can^ 
vassing  afoot,  and  have  almost  brought  themselves  to  the 
belief  that  they  are  gentlemen,  and  always  were  such.    This 
must  be  the  only  bitter  drop  in  the  cup  of  the  otherwise 
happy  possessors  of  the  Ttle^aph^  which  is  at  once  a  mine 
of  wealth  to  them,  and  an  instrument  by  which  they  become 
quite  a  power  in  the  state.     They  can,  however,  well  afford 
the  lucky  advertisement-agents  their  pro6ts,  and,  lookinj 
back,  may  rest  satisfied  tliat  things  are  as  they  are. 

But  there  are  many  daily  papers  in  London  besides  the 
Times  and  Tehgrapky  and  all  these  receive  a  plentiful  share^_ 
of  advertisements.     The  Standard  has,  within  the  past  feni^l 
years,  developed  its  resources  wonderfully,  and  may  be^l 
now  considered  a  good  fair  third  in  the  race  for  wealth, 
and  not  by  any  means  a  distant  third,  so  far  as  the  Tele- 
graph is  concerned.      This  paper  has  a  most   extensive  j 
circulation,  being  the  only  cheap  Conservative  organ  ix^^| 
London,  if  we  may  except  the  Houry  and  as  it  offers  to^^ 
advertisers   a  repetition   of  their  notices  in  the  Evening 
Standard^  it  is  not  surprising  that,  spacious  as  are  its  adver- 
tisement columns,  it  manages  to  fill  them  constantly,  and  at 
a  rate  which  would  have  considerably  astonished  its  old  pro- 
prietors.   The  Daily  Neivs,  which  a  few  years  back  reduced^J 
its  price  to  one  penny,  has,  since  the  Franco-Prussian  war^^l 
been  picking  up  wonderfully,  and  with  its  increased  health 
as  a  paper  its  outer  columns  have  proportionally  improved 
in  appearance;  many  experienced  advertisers  have  a  grc 
regard  for  the  A^avs,  which  they  look  upon  as  offering 
good  return  for  investments.     The  Morning  Adx'eriiser^  as 
the  organ  of  the  licensed  victuallers,  is  of  course  an  invalu- 
able medium  of  inter-communication  among  members  ol 
**  the  trade,"  and  in  it  are  to  be  found  advertisements  01 


A 


«< 


NEWSPAPERS,  ETC, 


«7 


^eiything  to  be  obUiDcd  in  connection  with  the  distillery^ 
ic  brewery,  and  the  tavern.  Publicans  who  want  potboys, 
id  potboys  who  want  employers,  barmaids,  barmen,  and 
M)ple  in  want  of  "snug"  businesses,  or  with  "good  family 
Sides*'  to  dispose  of,  all  consult  the  ^Tiser^  which  is  under 
[e  special  supervision  of  a  committee  of  licensed  victuallers, 
DO  act  as  stewards,  and  annually  hand  over  the  profits 
f  the  Licensed  Victuallers*  School  An  important  body  is 
is  committee^  a  body  which  feels  that  the  eye  of  Europe 

npon  it,  and  which  therefore  takes  copious  notes  of 
rcrylhing  j  is  broad  wideawake,  and  is  not  to  be  imposed 
1.  But  it  is  a  kindly  and  beneficent  body,  as  its  purpose 
LOWS  ;  and  a  little  licence  can  well  be  afforded  to  a  cora- 
|ttec  which  gives  its  time  and  trouble,  to  say  nothing  of 
idog  its  money,  in  the  interest  of  the  widow  and  the 
thcriess.  A  few  years  back  great  fun  used  to  be  got  out 
'tfic  *Tiser^  or  the  "  Gin  and  Gospel  Gazette,"  as  it  was 
Bed,  on  account  of  its  peculiar  views  on  current  ques- 
ts ;  but  all  that  is  altered  now,  and  since  the  advent  of 
e  present  regime  the  Adveriiser  has  improved  sufficiently 
be  regarded  as  a  general  paper,  and  tlicrefore  as  a  general 
.vertising  medium.  The  Hour  is  a  new  journal,  started  in 
jposition  to  the  Standard^  and  professing  the  same  politics. 
is  hardly  within  our  ken  so  far,  and  the  same  may  be  said 

the  Morning  Post^  which  has  its  own  exclusive  cliaitlie. 
I  referring  to  the  foregoing  journals,  we  have  made  no 
marks  beyond  those  to  which  we  are  guided  by  their  own 
ibltshed  statements,  and  we  have  intended  nothing  in- 
iious  in  the  order  of  selection.  For  obvious  reasons  we 
all  say  nothing  of  the  evening  papers,  beyond  that  all 
em  to  fill  their  advertisement  columns  with  ease,  and  to 
!  excellent  mediums  of  publicity. 

The  weekly  press  and  the  provincial  press  can  tell  their 
ra  story  without  assistance.  In  the  former  the  advertisc- 
enls  are  fairly  classed,  according  to  the  pretensions  of  the 
.pcfs  or  the  cause  they  adopt,  while  with  the  provincials 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


it  is  the  story  of  the  London  dailies  told  over  again.  Man- 
chester and  Liverpool  possess  magnificent  journals,  full  of 
advertisements  and  of  large  circulation,  and  so  do  all  other 
large  towns  in  the  country;  but  we  doubt  much  if,  out  of 
London,  Glasgow  is  to  be  beaten  on  the  score  of  its  papers 
or  the  energy  of  its  advertisers. 


CHAPTER    II. 

iKTRODUCTORY — STREET  AND  GENERAL 
ADVERTISING, 

:ems  indeed  singular  that  we  are  obliged  to  regard 
idvertising  as  a  comparatively  modem  institution  ;  for, 
1  be  shown  in  the  progress  of  this  work,  the  first  ad- 
ent  which  can  be  depended  upon  as  being  what  it 
s  to  be  was,  so  far  as  can  be  discovered,  published 
ch  more  than  two  hundred  years  ago.  But  though 
not  find  any  instances  of  business  notices  appearing 
before  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
l>ccause  there  were  not,  so  far  as  our  knowledge 
papers  in  which  to  advertise,  there  is  little  doubt  that 
ire  among  tradesmen  and  merchants  to  make  good 
wares  has  had  an  existence  almost  as  long  as  the 
of  buying  and  selling,  and  it  is  but  natural  to 
»osc  that  advertisements  in  some  sljape  or  form  have 
not  only  from  time  immemorial,  but  almost  for  all 
Signs  over  shops  and  stalls  seem  naturally  to  have 
tlie  first  efforts  in  the  direction  of  advertisements,  and 
back  to  the  remotest  portions  of  the  world's  his- 
Fublic  notices  also  were  posted  about  in  the  first 
f  the  children  of  Israel,  the  utterances  of  the  kings 
phets  being  inscribed  on  parchments  and  exposed 
high  places  of  the  cities.  It  was  also  customary, 
the  Christian  era,  for  a  scroll  to  be  exhibited  when 
the  Passion  or  other  sacred  plays  were  about  to  be 
ed,  and  comparatively  recently  we  have  received 
c  intelligence  that  in  Pompeii  and  similar  places 


I 


20 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


advertising  by  means  of  signs  and  inscriptions  was  qm 
common.  The  "  History  of  Signboards,"  a  very  exhaustii 
and  valuable  book,  quotes  Aristotle,  and  refers  to  Litcia: 
Aristophanes,  and  others,  in  proof  of  the  fact  that  signboai 
advertisements  were  used  in  ancient  Greece,  but  the  infc 
mation  is  extremely  vague.  Of  the  Romans,  however,  rao; 
is  known.  Some  streets  were  with  them  known  by  meai 
of  signs.  The  book  referred  to  tells  us  that  the  bush,  tl 
Romans'  tavern  sign,  gave  rise  to  the  proverb,  '*  Vino  vc 
dibUi  suspensa  hedera  non  opus  estj"  and  hence  we  dcrii 
our  own  sign  of  the  bush,  and  our  proverb,  "  Good  wii 
needs  no  bush."  An  ansa  or  handle  of  a  pitcher  was  th( 
the  sign  of  a  pothouse,  and  hence  establishments  of  th 
kind  were  afterwards  denominated  anst^, 

A  correspondent  writing  to  A'oUs  and  Queries^  in  answ 
to  a  question  in  reference  to  early  advertising,  says  that  tl 
mode  adopted  by  the  Hebrews  appears  to  have  be< 
chiefly  by  word  of  mouth,  not  by  writing.  Hence  t] 
Hebrew  word  kara  signifies  to  cry  aloud,  and  to  annoum 
or  make  known  publicly  (xTiaueff*!*) ;  and  the  annouDC 
ment  or  proclamation,  as  a  matter  of  course,  was  usual 
made  in  the  streets  and  cliief  places  of  concourse.  Tl 
matters  thus  proclaimed  were  chiefly  of  a  sacred  kin 
as  might  be  expected  under  a  theocracy  \  and  we  hai 
no  evidence  that  secular  affairs  were  made  the  subject 
similar  announcements.  In  one  instance,  indeed  (Isa.  xi 
3),  kara  has  been  supposed  to  signify  the  calling  out 
troops;  but  this  may  be  doubted.  The  Greeks  came  a  st( 
nearer  to  our  idea  of  advertising,  for  they  made  their  publ 
announcements  by  writing  as  well  as  orally.  For  announc 
ment  by  word  of  mouth  they  had  their  x^fi/|,  who,  wi 
various  offices  besides,  combined  that  of  public  crier.  H 
duties  as  crier  appear  to  have  been  restricted,  with  fc 
exceptions,  to  state  announcements  and  to  great  occasioc 
He  gave  notice,  however,  of  sales.  For  the  publication 
their  laws  the  Greeks  employed  various  kinds  of  tabid 


STREET  AND  GENERAL  ADVERTISING. 


Ht 


mm*ff,  «?•«?,  xufiSi/f.  On  these  the  laws  were  written,  to 
be  displayed  for  public  inspection.  The  Romans  largely 
advertised  private  as  well  as  public  matters,  and  by  writing 
as  well  as  by  word  of  mouth.  They  had  their  prtecones^ 
or  criers,  who  not  only  had  their  public  duties,  but  an- 
nounced the  times,  places,  and  conditions  of  sales,  and  cried 
things  lost.  Hawkers  cried  their  own  goods.  Thus  Cicero 
speaks  of  one  who  cried  figs,  Caunms  damitabat  (De  Divin* 
XL  40).  But  the  Romans  also  advertised,  in  a  stricter  sense 
of  the  term,  by  writing.  The  bills  were  called  liMU^  and' 
were  used  for  advertising  sales  of  estates,  for  absconded 
debtors,  and  for  things  lost  or  found.  The  advertisements 
were  often  written  on  tablets  (JaheJia)^  which  were  affixed 
to  pillars  {piics  coiumncE).  On  the  walls  of  Pompeii  have 
been  discovered  various  advertisements.  There  will  be  a 
dedication  or  formal  opening  of  certain  baths.  The  com- 
pany attending  are  promised  slaughter  of  wild  beasts,  athletic 
games,  perfumed  sprinkling,  and  awnings  to  keep  off  the 
sun  {vataiia,  athictaj  sparsiotics,  veto)*  One  other  mode  of 
public  announcement  employed  by  the  Romans  should  be 
mentioned,  and  that  was  by  signs  suspended  or  painted  on 
the  wall.  Thus  a  suspended  shield  served  as  the  sign  of  a 
tavern  {Quintil.  vi.  3),  and  nuisances  were  prohibited  by  the 
painting  of  two  sacred  serpents.  Among  the  French,  adver- 
tising appears  to  have  become  very  general  towards  the 
dose  of  the  sixteenth  century.  In  particular,  placards 
attacking  private  character  had,  in  consequence  of  the 
religious  wars,  become  so  numerous  and  outrageous,  that 
subsequently,  in  1652,  the  Goveniment  found  it  necessary 
to^ntcrpose  for  their  repression.  + 
Speaking  of  the  signs  of  Herculaneum  and  Pompeii,  the 


"  The  opening  notice  of  the  baths  at  Pompeii  wa?  almost  perfect 

*^m  diicovcred,    aad   originally   read   thus  : — "  Dedicatone  .  Thcr- 

Moncris  .  Cn«i  .  Allei  .  Nigidii  .  Mail .  Venalio  .  AOielee  . 

■ues  .  Vela  .  Enint .  Mftio  .  Principi .  Colonise  .  Felicilcr." 

♦  iVWrt  <tn4  Queria,  vol  xl,  3d  seriei. 


32 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


d 


"  History  of  Signboards  "  says  that  a  few  were  painted,  but, 
as  a  rule,  they  appear  to  have  been  made  of  stone,  or  terra 
cotta  relievo,  and  set  into  the  pilasters  at  the  sides  of  the 
open  shop  fronts.  Thus  there  have  been  found  a  goat,  the 
sign  of  a  dairy,  and  a  mule  driving  a  mill,  the  sign  of  a 
baker.  At  the  door  of  a  school  was  the  highly  suggestive 
and  not  particularly  pleasant  sign  to  pupils  of  a  boy  being 
birched.  Like  to  our  own  signs  of  two  brewers  carrying  a 
tun  slung  on  a  pole,  a  Pompeian  publican  had  t^vo  slaves 
represented  above  his  door  carrying  an  amphora,  and 
another  dispenser  of  drink  had  a  painting  of  Bacchus  press- 
ing a  bunch  of  grapes.  At  a  perfumer's  shop  in  the  street 
of  Mercury  were  represented  various  items  of  that  profes- 
sion, notably  four  men  carrying  a  box  with  vases  of  perfume, 
and  men  laying  out  and  perfuming  a  corpse.  There  was 
also  a  sign  of  the  Two  Gladiators,  under  which,  in  the 
usual  Pompeian  cacography,  was  the  following  : — **  Abiam 
venerem  Pompeiianama  iradam  qui  hoc  Izeserit,"  Besides 
these  were  the  signs  of  the  Anchor,  the  Ship  (possibly  a 
ship-chandler's),  a  sort  of  a  Cross,  the  Chequers,  the 
Phallus  on  a  baker's  shop,  with  the  words,  *'  Hie  habitat 
felicitas  ;"  whilst  in  Herculaneum  there  was  a  very  cleverly 
painted  Amorino,  or  Cupid,  carrying  a  pair  of  lady's  shoes, 
one  on  his  head  and  the  other  in  his  hand.  It  is  also  pro- 
bable that  the  various  artificers  of  Rome  used  their  tools 
as  signs  over  their  workshops  and  residences,  as  it  is 
found  that  they  were  sculptured  on  their  tombs  in  the 
catacombs.  On  the  tombstone  of  Diogenes,  the  grave- 
digger,  there  is  a  pickaxe  and  a  lamp;  Banto  and  Maxima 
have  the  tools  of  carpenters,  a  saw,  an  adze,  and  a  chisel ; 
Veneria,  a  tire-woman,  has  a  mirror  and  a  comb.  ThereA 
are  others  with  wool-combers'  implements ;  a  physician  has 
a  cupping-glass;  a  poulterer,  a  case  of  fowls;  a  surveyor, 
a  measuring  rule ;  a  baker,  a  bushel  measure,  a  millstone, 
and  some  ears  of  com ;  and  other  signs  arc  numerous  on 
the  graves  of  the  departed.    Even  the  modem  custom  o, 


< 


?<'^«^«^-<di 


5      S^ 


^  S     <      > 

-- —  's^     .    ^  -■     ~^    ^     ''7    ^  ^.  ^        ^ 


I 


^ 


ol 


\ 


-^<^" 


Z 


/x 


I      iio: 


STREET  AND  GENERAL  ADVERTISING. 

punning  on  the  name,  so  common  on  signboards,  finds 
its  precedent  on  these  stones.  The  grave  of  Dracontius 
was  embellished  with  a  dragon,  that  of  Onager  with  a  wild 
ass,  and  that  of  Umbricius  with  a  shady  tree.  Leo's  grave 
received  a  lion ;  Doleus,  father  and  son,  two  casks ;  Her- 
bacia,  two  baskets  of  herbs;  and  Porcula,  a  pig.  It  re- 
quires, therefore,  but  the  least  possible  imagination  to  see 
Ihat  all  these  symbols  and  advertisements  were  by  no 
means  conlmed  to  the  use  of  the  dead,  but  were  exten- 
sively used  in  the  interests  of  the  living. 

Street  advertising,  in  its  most  original  form  among  us, 
was  therefore  without  doubt  derived  from  the  Romans  j 
and  this  system  gradually  grew,  unlil»  in  the  Middle  Ages, 
there  was  hardly  a  house  of  business  without  its  distinctive 
sign  or  advertisement ;  which  was  the  more  necessary,  as  in 
those  days  numbers  to  houses  were  unknown.  *'  In  the 
Middle  Ages  the  houses  of  the  nobility,  both  in  town  and 
country,  when  the  family  was  absent,  were  used  as  hostelries 
for  traveUers.  The  family  arms  always  hung  in  front  of 
the  house,  and  the  most  conspicuous  object  in  those  arms 
gave  a  name  to  the  establishment  amongst  travellers,  who, 
unacquainted  with  the  mysteries  of  heraldry,  called  a  lion 
gules  or  azure  by  the  vernacular  name  of  the  Red  or 
Blue  Lion.  Such  coats  of  arms  gradually  became  a  very 
popular  intimation  that  there  was — 

GochI  entertainment  for  alt  that  passes — 
Horses,  mares,  men,  and  asses. 

And  innkeepers  began  to  adopt  them,  hanging  out  red 
lions  and  green  dragons  as  the  best  way  to  acquaint  the 
blic  that  they  offered  food  and  shelter.  Still,  as  long  as 
vilisation  was  only  at  a  low  ebb,  the  so-called  open  houses 
few,  and  competition  trifling,  signs  were  of  but  little  use. 
A  few  objects,  typical  of  the  trade  carried  on,  would  suffice; 
a  knife  for  the  cutler,  a  stocking  for  the  hosier,  a  hand  for 
the  glover,  a  pair  of  scissors  for  the  tailor,  a  bunch  of 
grapes  for  the  vintner,  fully  answered  public  reqtiirements. 


F«4 


mSTVRY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


But  as  luxury  increased,  and  the  number  of  houses  or 
shops  dealing  in  the  same  article  multiplied,  something 
more  was  wanted.  Particular  trades  continued  lo  be  con- 
fined to  particular  streets ;  the  desideratum  then  was  to 
give  to  each  shop  a  name  or  token  by  which  it  might  be 
mentioned  in  conversation,  so  that  it  could  be  recom- 
mended and  customers  sent  to  it.  Reading  was  still  a 
scarce  acquirement,  consequently  to  write  up  the  owner's 
name  would  have  been  of  little  use.  Those  that  could 
advertised  their  name  by  a  rebus — thus,  a  hare  and  a 
bottle  stood  for  Harebottle,  and  two  cocks  for  Cox. 
Others,  whose  names  could  represent,  adopted  pictorial 
objects ;  and  as  the  quantity  of  these  augmented,  new 
subjects  were  continually  required.  The  animal  kingdom 
was  ransacked,  from  the  mighty  elephant  to  the  humble 
bee,  from  the  eagle  to  the  sparrow ;  the  vegetable  king- 
dom, from  the  palm-tree  and  cedar  to  the  marigold  and 
daisy ;  everything  on  the  earth  and  in  the  firmament  above 
it  was  put  under  contribution.  Portraits  of  the  great  men 
of  all  ages,  and  views  of  towns,  both  painted  with  a  great 
deal  more  of  fancy  than  of  truth  ;  articles  of  dress,  imple- 
ments of  trades,  domestic  utensils,  things  visible  and  in- 
visible, '  Ea  quae  sunt  tanquam  ea  quae  non  sunt/  everything 
was  attempted  in  order  to  attract  attention  and  lo  obtain 
publicity.  Finally,  as  all  signs  in  a  town  were  painted  by 
the  same  small  number  of  individuals,  whose  talents  and 
imagination  were  limited,  it  followed  that  the  same  subjects 
were  often  repeated,  introducing  only  a  change  in  the 
colour  for  a  difference."  * 

From  the  foregoing  can  be  traced  the  gradual  growth  of 
street  advertising  until  it  has  reached  its  present  extensive 
pitch;  and  though  the  process  may  be  characterised  as 
Blow,  no  one  who  looks  around  at  the  well-covered  hoard- 
ings and  the  be-plastered  signs  on  detached  and  prominent 


History  of  Signboards/ 


S7KEET AND  GENERAL  ADVERTISING,  as 

louses  can  doubt  that  it  is  sure.     Proclamations,  and  such-   j 
like  official  announcements,  were  probably  the  first  speci-  I 
mens  of  street  advertising,  as  we  now  understand  the  terra  ;    I 
but  it  was  not  until  printing  became  general,  and  until  the    I 
people  became  conversant  with  the  mysteries  of  reading    | 
and  writing,  that  posters  and  handbills  were  to  any  extent    / 
used.     Mention  is  made   in  1679  of  a  tradesman  named  J 
Jonathan    Holder,  haberdasher,  of  the  city  of  London, 
who  gave  to  every  purchaser  to  the  extent  of  a  guinea  a 
printed  list  of  the  articles  kept  in  stock  by  him,  with  the 
prices  affixed.     The  paper  in  which  this  item  of  news  was 
recorded  seems  to  have  regarded  Mr  Holder's  practice  as 
a  dangerous  innovation,  and  remarks  that  it  would  be  quite 
destructive  to  trade  if  shopkeepers  lavished  so  much  of 
their  capital  in  printing  useless  bills.    This  utterance  now 
seems  ridiculous  ;  but  in  the  course  of  another  two  centuries 
many  orthodox  opinions  of  the  present  day  will  receive  as 
complete  a  downfall  as  that  just  recorded. 

Within  the  recollections  of  men  who  are   still    young    \ 
street  advertising  has  considerably  changed.     Twenty  years    I 
ago  the  billsticker  was  a  nuisance  of  the  most  intolerable 
kind,  and  though  we  can  hardly  now  consider  him  a  bless- 
ing, his  habits  have  changed  very  mu'ch  for  the  better.    Never 
heeding  the  constant  announcement  to  him  to  beware,  the 
Etnsticker  cared  noth^nglor  the  privacy _pf  deail  walls,  or, 
for  the  matter  of  tTiat,  of  dwelling-houses  and  street  doors ; 
and  though  he  was  hardly  ever  himself  to  be  seen^  his 
jisfcgurative  work  was  a  prominent  fp.iturp.  nf  thci"'*^''"- 
polis^     Tt  wa^aUn  '"y^^sJvlgrc^  by  b^"^  a  point  of  honour — 
tf  the  term  may  be  used  in  connection  with  billsticTcers — to 
paste  over  the  work  o*  a  nval  :  andSQ  the  h  oardings"  "iisecT' 
to  present  the^iost  heterogeaeous  possible  appearance, 
ana  thoughbnis_werfi  p^r"^if^ll,  thfjf  tp^pijj£ibjTifj  was  ofa, 
very  limited  description.     Sunday  morning  early  used  to 
be  a  busy  time  with^the  wandering  billsticker.     Provided 
with  a  light  cart  and  an  assistant,  he  would  make  a  raid  on 


I 

I. 


a6  fflSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 

a  whole  district,  sticking  his  notices  and  disappearing  with 
marvellous  rapidity.  And  how  he  would  chuckle  as  he  drove 
away,  more  especially  if,  in  addition  to  disfiguring  a  private 
wall,  he  had  succeeded  in  covering  over  the  handiwork  of 
a  rival  I  For  this  reason  the  artful  billsticker  used  to  select 
&  time  when  it  was  still  early  enough  to  evade  detection, 
and  yet  late  enough  to  deface  the  work  of  tliose  who  had 
gone  before  him.  Billsticking  was  thus  an  art  attended 
with  some  difficulties ;  and  it  was  not  until  the  advent  of 
contractors,  like  Willing,  Partington,  and  others,  tJiat  any 
positive  publicity  could  be  depended  upon  in  connection 
with  posting. 

Yet,  in  the  days  of  which  we  have  just  been  speaking, 
the  man  of  paste  considered  himself  a  very  important 
personage  ;  and  it  is  not  so  very  long  since  one  individual 
published  himself  under  the  style  and  title  of  "Champion 
Billposter,"  and  as  such  defied  all  comers.  It  was  for 
some  time  doubtful  whether  his  claims  depended  upon  his 
ability  to  beat  and  thrash  all  rivals  at  fisticuffs,  wliether  he 
was  able  to  stick  more  bills  in  a  given  time  than  any  other 
man,  or  whether  he  had  a  larger  and  more  important  con- 
nection than  usually  fell  to  the  poster's  lot ;  in  fact,  the 
question  has  never  been  settled,  for  exception  having  been 
foV^T^  ♦o  his  assumption  of  the  title  of  champion  from  any 
if  view,  and  reference  having  been  made  to  the 
of  sporting  papers,  the  ambitious  one  gracefully 
w  his  pretensions,  and  the  matter  subsided.  A  genera- 
tion ago  one  of  the  most  popular  songs  of  the  day  com* 
mcnccd  something  like  this — 


*'  I  'm  Sammy  Slap  the  billsticker,  and  you  must  all  agree,  sirs, 
I  iticks  lo  business  like  a  irump  while  biisines*  sticks  lo  me,  sirs. 
There  's  some  folks  calls  me  plasterer,  but  they  deserve  a  banging, 
Cause  ycr  see,  genteelly  speaking,  that  my  traJc  is  paperban^ing. 

Wi:h  my  paste,  paste,  paste  ! 

All  the  wot  Id  is  puffing, 

So  I  '11  paste,  paste,  paste ! " 


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STREET  AliD  GENERAL  ADVERTISING, 


■J 


TTsc  advent  of  advertisement  contractors,  who  purchased 
the  right,  exclusive  anii  absolute,  to  stick  bills  on  a  hoard- 
ing, considerably  narrowed  the  avocations  of  what  might 
almost  have  been  called  the  predatory  billsticker.  For 
a  long  time  the  fight  was  fierce  and  often ;  as  soon  as  an 
"advertisement  station"  had  been  finished  off,  its  bills  and 
announcements  being  all  regulated  with  mathematical  pre- 
cision, a  cloud  of  skirmishers,  armed  to  the  teeth  with  bills, 
pots,  and  brushes,  would  convert,  in  a  few  minutes,  the 
orderly  arrangements  of  the  contractor  to  a  perfect  chaos. 
But  time,  which  rights  all  things,  aided  in  the  present  in- 
stance by  a  few  magisterial  decisions,  and  by  an  unlooked- 
for  and  unaccountable  alacrity  on  the  part  of  the  police,  set 
these  matters  straight;  and  now  it  is  hard  to  find  an  en- 
closure in  London  the  hoarding  of  which  is  not  notified  as 
being  the  "  advertisement  station "  of  some  contractor  or 
other  who  would  blush  to  be  called  billsticker.  In  the 
suburbs  the  flying  brigade  is  still  to  be  found  hard  at  work, 
but  daily  its  campaigning  ground  becomes  more  limited, 
and  gradually  these  Bashi-Bazouks  of  billsticking  are  be- 
coming absorbed  into  the  regular  ranks  of  the  agents' 
standing  corps. 

Placard  advertising,  of  an  orderly,  and  even  ornamental, 
character,  has  assumed  extensive  proportions  at  most  of 
the   metropolitan    railway   stations,   the   agents   to   whom 
we  have  just  referred  having  extended  their  operations  in 
the  direction  of  blank  spaces  on  the  walls,  which  they  sub- 
let to  the  general  advertising  publia     Often  firms  which   | 
advertise  on  an  extensive  scale  themselves  contract  with   1 
the  railway  companies,  and  not  a  few  have  extended  their    \ 
announcements  from  the  stations  to  the  sides  of  the  line,     I 
little  enamelled  plates  being  used  for  this  purpose.     Any    J 
one  having  a  vacant  space  at  the  side  of  his  house,  or  a 
blank  wall  to  the  same,  may,  provided  he  live  in  anything 
like  a  business  thoroughfare,  and  that  the  vantage  place  is 
free  from  obstruction,  do  advantageous  business  with  an 


I 


I 


I 


I 


JUSTORY  OF  ADVERrrSING. 


advertisement  contractor ;  and,  as  matters  are  progressing, 
we  may  some  day  expect  to  see  not  only  the  private  walls 
of  the  houses  in  Belgrave  Square  and  suchlike  fashionable 
localities  well  papered,  but  the  outsides  and  insides  of  our 
public  buildings  utilised  as  well  by  the  hand  of  the  adver- 
tiser. One  thing  is  certain,  no  one  could  say  that  many  of 
the  latter  would  be  spoiled,  no  matter  what  the  innovation 
to  which  they  were  subjected. 

The  most  recent  novelty  in  advertising  has  been  the 
introduction  of  a  cabinet,  surmounted  by  a  clock  face,  into 
public-house  bars  and  luncheon  rooms.  These  cabinets 
are  divided  into  spaces  of  say  a  superficial  foot  each,  which 
are  to  be  let  off  at  a  set  price.  So  far  as  we  have  yet  seen, 
these  squares  have  been  filled  for  the  most  part  with  the 
promoters'  advertisements  only  j  and  it  is  admitted  by  all 
who  know  most  about  advertising  that  the  very  worst  sign 
one  can  have  as  to  the  success  of  a  medium  is  that  of  an 
advertisement  emanating  from  the  promoters  or  proprietors 
of  anything  in  which  such  advertisement  appears.  Why  this 
should  be  we  are  not  prepared  to  say.  We  are  more  able 
to  show  why  it  should  not  be ;  for  no  man,  advertisement 
contractor  or  oiherwise^  should,  under  fair  commercial  con- 
ditions, ask  another  to  do  what  he  would  not  do  himself. 
So  we  are  satisfied  to  rest  content  with  the  knowledge  that 
wh.1t  we  have  stated  is  fact,  however  incongruous  it  may 
seem,  which  any  one  can  endorse  by  applying  himself  to 
the  ethics  of  advertising.  Certainly,  in  the  instance  quoted, 
the  matter  looks  very  suggestive ;  perhaps  it  depends  on 
the  paradox,  that  he  who  is  most  anxious  that  others  should 
advertise  is  least  inclined  to  do  so  himself. 

Not  long  ago  the  promoters  of  a  patent  umbrella,  which 
seems  to  have  gone  the  mysterious  way  of  all  umbrellas, 
patent  or  otlierwise.  and  to  have  disappeared,  availed  them- 
selves of  a  great  boat-race  to  attract  public  attention  to 
their  wares.  Skiffs  fitted  with  sails,  on  each  of  which  were , 
painted  the  patent  parapluie,  and  a  recommendation  to  buy 


^ 


STREET  AND  GENERAL  ADVERTISING.  29 


dotted  the  river,  and  continually  evaded  the  efforts  of  the 
lonservancy  Police,  who  were  endeavouring  to  marshal  all 
le  small  craft  together,  so  as  to  leave  a  clear  course  for  the 
competitors.  Every  time  one  of  these  advertising  boats 
broke  out  into  niid-strearo,  carrying  its  eternal  umbrella 
between  the  dense  lines  of  spectators,  the  advertisement 
was  extremely  valuable,  for  straying  boats  of  any  kind  are 
on  such  occasions  very  noticeable,  and  these  were  of  course 
much  more  so.  Still  it  would  seem  from  the  sequel  that 
this  bold  innovation  had  been  better  applied  to  something 
more  likely  to  hit  the  public  taste ;  for  whether  it  was  that 
people,  knowing  how  fleeting  a  joy  is  a  good  umbrella,  were 
determined  not  to  put  temptation  in  the  way  of  their  friends, 
or  whether  the  experiment  absorbed  all  the  spare  capital  of 
the  inventor  and  patentees,  we  know  not ;  but  this  we  do 
know,  that  since  the  time  of  which  we  speak  little  or  nothing 
has  been  heard  of  the  novel  "gingham." 
^B    Another  innovation  in  the  way  of  advergssments-ju 

i 


lat,  common  a  few  years  back,  nfratenr/illipg  th^  fli^tones. 


kt  first  this  system  assumed  veiy  small  proportions,  a  paral* 
logram,  looking  like  an  envelope  with  a  black  border  that 
had  been  dropped,  and  containing  the  address  of  the  adver- 
tiser, being  the  object  of  the  artist  entrusted  with  the  mis- 
sion. Gradually,  however,  the  inscriptions  grew,  until  they 
became  a  perfect  nuisance,  and  were  put  down — if  the  term 
applies  to  anything  on  such  a  low  level — by  the  intervention 
of  the  police  and  the  magistrates.  The  undertakers  were 
the  greatest  sinners  in  this  respect,  the  invitations  to  be 
buried  being  most  numerous  and  varied.  These  '*  black 
workers"  or  "death-hunters,"  as  they  are  often  called,  are 
in  I-ondon  most  persistent  advertisers.  They  can  hardly 
think  that  people  will  die  to  obhge  them  and  do  good  for 
trade,  yet  in  some  districts  they  will,  with  the  most  unde- 
viating  persistency,  drop  their  liule  books,  informing  you 
how,  when,  where,  and  at  what  rates  you  may  be  buried 
£Conoa]y  or  despatch,  or  both,  as  the  case  may  be, 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 

down  your  area,  or  poke  them  under  your  door,  or  into  the 
letter-box.  More,  it  is  slated  on  good  authority,  than  one 
pushing  contractor,  living  in  a  poor  neighbourhood,  obtains 
a  list  of  all  the  folk  attended  by  the  parish  doctor,  and  at 
each  of  the  houses  leaves  his  little  pamphlet,  let  us  hope 
with  the  desire  of  cheering  and  comforting  the  sick  and 
ailing.  To  such  a  man  Death  must  come  indeed  as  a  friend, 
so  long,  of  course,  as  the  grira  king  comes  to  the  customers 
only. 

A  few  years  back,  when  hoardings  were  common  pro* 
perty,  the  undertakers  had  a  knack  of  posting  their  dismal 
little  price-lists  in  the  centre  of  great  broadsheets  likely  to 
attract  any  unusual  share  of  attention.  They  were  not 
particular,  however,  and  any  vantage  space,  from  a  door- 
post to  a  dead  wall,  came  within  their  comprehension. 
Another  ingenious,  and,  from  its  colour,  somewhat  sugges- 
tive, plan  was  about  this  time  brought  into  requisition  by 
an  undertaker  for  the  destruction  of  a  successful  rival's 
advertisements.  He  armed  one  of  his  assistants  with  a 
great  can  of  blacking  and  a  brush,  and  instructed  him  to 
go  by  secret  ways  and  deface  the  opposition  jjlacards.  Of 
course  the  other  man  followed  suit,  and  for  a  time  an 
undertaker's  bill  was  known  best  by  its  illegibility.  But 
ultimately  these  two  men  of  colour  met  and  fought  with  the 
instruments  provided  by  their  employers.  They  did  not 
look  lovely  when  cliarged  before  a  magistrate  next  morning, 
and  being  bound  over  to  keep  the  peace,  departed  to  worry 
each  other,  or  each  other's  bills,  no  more.  There  is  another 
small  bill  feature  of  advertising  London  which  is  so  objec- 
tionable that  we  will  pass  it  by  with  a  simple  thankful 
notice  that  its  promoters  are  sometimes  overtaken  by  tardy 
but  ironhanded  justice 

Most  people  can  recollect  the  hideous  glass  pillars  or 
"  indicators  "  which,  for  advertising  purposes,  were  stuck 
about  London.  The  first  one  made  its  appearance  at  Hyde 
Park  Comer,  and  though,  in  deference  to  public  opinion,  it 


STREET  AND  GENERAL  ADVERT/SING.  31 

not  remain  there  very  long,  less  aristocratic  neighbour- 
>ds  hail  to  bear  their  adornments  until  the  complete 
Lilure  of  the  attempt  to  obtain  advertisements  to  fiU  the 
vacant  spaces  showed  how  fatuous  was  the  projecL  The 
last  of  these  posts,  we  remember,  was  opposite  the  Angel 
at  Islington,  and  there,  assisted  by  local  faith  and  indol- 
ence, it  remained  until  a  short  time  back.  But  it  too  has 
gone  now,  and  with  it  has  almost  faded  the  recollection  of 
these  hideous  nightmares  of  advertising. 

The  huge  vans,  plastered  all  over  with  bills,  which  used 
to  traverse  London,  to  the  terror  of  the  horses  and  wonder 
of  the  yokels,  were  improved  off  the  face  of  the  earth  a 
quarter  of  a  century  ago;  and  now  the  only  perambulating 
advertisement  we  liave  is  the  melancholy  sandwich-man 
and  the  dispenser  of  handbills,  gentlemen  who  sometimes 
"  double  their  parts,"  to  use  a  theatrical  expression.  To  a 
playhouse  manager  we  owe  the  biggest  thing  in  street  and' 
general  advertising — that  in  connection  with  the  "  Dead 
Heart" — that  has  yet  been  recorded.  Mr  Smith,  who  had 
charge  of  this  department  of  the  Adelphi,  has  published  a 
statement  which  gives  the  totals  as  follows  : — 10,000,000 
adhesive  labels  (which,  by  the  way,  were  an  intolerable 
nuisance),  30,000  small  cuts  of  the  guillotine  scene,  5000 
reams  of  note-paper,  110,000  business  envelopes,  60,000 
stamped  envelopes,  2000  six-sheet  cuts  of  Bastile  scene, 
5,000,000  handbills,  1000  six -sheet  posters,  500  slips, 
1,000,000  cards  heartshaped,  100  twenty-eight  sheet  pos- 
ters, and  30,000  folio  cards  for  shop  windows.  This  was 
quite  exclusive  of  newspaper  wrappers  and  various  other 
ingenious  means  of  attracting  attention  to  the  play  through- 
out the  United  Kingdom. 

Among  other  forms  of  advertising,  that  on  the  copper 
coinage  must  not  be  forgotten.  The  extensive  defacement 
of  the  pence  and  halfpence  of  the  realm  in  the  interests  of 
a  well-known  weekly  paper  ultimately  led  to  the  interference 
of  Parliamenti  and  may  fairly  be  regarded  as  the  cause,  or 


\ 


I 

I 


I 


k 


3» 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING 


A 

m  of 


at  all  events  as  one  of  the  principal  causes,  of  the  sum 
j^io,ooo  being  voted  in  July  1855  for  the  replacement  of 
the  old,  worn,  battered,  and  mixed  coppers  by  our  present 
bronze  coinage,  « 

And  now,  having  given  a  hurried  and  summarised  glance 
at  the  growth  and  progress  of  advertising  of  all  kinds  and 
descriptions,  from  the  earliest  periods  till  the  present  time, 
we  will  begin  at  the  beginning,  and  tell  the  story  with  all  its 
ramifications,  mainly  according  to  those  best  possible  autho- 
rities, the  advertisements  themselves. 


CHAPTER    III. 


jtNC/ENT  FORMS  OF  ADVEFT/SmO. 


THOUGH  it  would  be  quite  impossible  to  give  any  txm 
idea  as  to  ihc  period  when  the  identical  first  adver- 
tisement of  any  kind  made  its  appearance,  or  what  particular 
dime  has  the  honour  of  introducing  a  system  which  now  plays 
so  important  a  port  in  all  civilised  countries,  there  need  be 
DO  hesitation  in  ascribing  the  origin  of  advertising  to  the 
remotest  possible  limes — lo  the  earliest  times  when  com- 
petition, caused  by  an  increasing  population,  led  each 
man  to  make  efforts  in  that  race  for  prominence  which  has 
in  one  way  or  other  gone  on  ever  since.  As  soon  as  the 
progress  of  events  or  the  development  of  civilisation  had 
cast  communities  together,  each  individual  member  naturally 
tried  to  do  the  best  he  could  for  himself,  and  as  he,  in  the 
course  of  events,  had  naturally  to  encounter  rivals  in  his 
,ipay  of  Ufej  it  is  not  hard  to  understand  that  some  means  of 
preventing  a  particular  light  being  hid  under  a  bushel  soon 
presented  itself.  That  this  means  was  an  advertisement  is 
almost  certain  ;  and  so  almost  as  long  as  there  has  been  a 
world — or  quite  as  long,  using  the  term  as  it  is  best  under- 
stood now — there  have  been  advertisements.  At  this  early 
stage  of  history,  almost  every  trade  and  profession  was  still 
exercised  by  itiri^eiants,  who  proclaimed  their  wares  or  their 
qualifications  with  more  or  less  flowery  encomiums,  with, 
in  fact,  the  advertisement  verbal,  which,  under  some  cir- 
kumstances,  is  still  very  useful.  But  the  time  came  when 
[tlie  tradesman  or  professor  settled  down,  and  opened  what, 


M 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISma, 


for  argument's  sake,  wc  will  call  a  shop.  Then  anothei 
method  of  obtaining  publicity  became  requisite,  and  th( 
crier  stepped  forward  to  act  as  a  medium  between  the  pro 
vider  and  the  consumer.  This  is,  however,  but  anotha 
form  of  the  same  system,  and,  like  its  simpler  congener,  haj 
still  an  existence,  though  not  an  ostentatious  one.  Wher 
the  art  of  writing  was  invented,  the  means  of  extending  lh( 
knowledge  which  had  heretofore  been  simply  cried,  wai 
greatly  extended,  and  advertising  gradually  became  an  ar 
lo  be  cultivated. 

Very  soon  after  the  invention  of  writing  in  Its  rudes 
form,  it  was  turned  to  account  in  the  way  of  giving  pub 
licity  to  events  in  the  way  of  advertisement;  for  reward: 
for  and  descriptions  of  runaway  slaves,  written  on  papyr 

)  more  than  three  thousand  years  ago,  have  been  exhume< 
from  the  ruins  of  Thebes.  An  early  but  mythical  instanci 
of  a  reward  being  offered  in  an  advertisement  is  relate( 
by  Pausanias,*  who,  speaking  of  the  art  of  working  metals 
says  that  the  people  of  Phineum,  in  Arcadia,  pretende< 
that  Ulysses  dedicated  a  statue  of  bronze  to  Neptune,  if 
the  hope  that  by  that  deity's  intervention  he  might  recovei 
the  horses  he  had  lost;  and,  he  adds,  "they  showed  m< 
an  inscription  on  the  pedestal  of  the  statue  offering  i 
reward  to  any  person  who  should  find  and  take  care  o 
the  animals." 

The  Greeks  used  another  mode  of  giving  publicity  whicl 
is  worthy  of  remark  here.  They  used  to  affix  to  the  statue 
of  the  infernal  deities,  in  the  /ernetios  of  their  temples 
curses  inscribed  on  sheets  of  lead,  by  which  they  devote* 
lo  the  vengeance  of  those  gods  the  persons  who  hat 
found   o^  stolen  certain  things,  or  injured  the  advertiser 

.*        ^    other  way.     As  the  names  of  the  offenders  wer 

given   '^ 


full  in  these  singular  inscriptions,  they  had  th 
'/"   making  the  grievances  known  to  mortals  as  we 


Pauiaiiias  Gnec.,  lib.  viii.  c.  14,  Arcadia, 


AA'CIENT  FOJiMS  OF  ADVERTISING. 

Immortals,  and  thus  the   advertisement  was  attained. 

ic  only  difference  between  these  and  ordinary  public 
notices  was  that  the  threat  of  punishment  was  held  out 
instead  of  the  offer  of  reward.  A  compromise  was  endea- 
voured generally  at  the  same  time,  the  evil  invoked  being 
deprecated  in  case  of  restitution  of  the  property.  A  most 
interesting  collection  of  such  imprecations  {dira  defixiones^ 
or  xardifafioi)  was  found  in  1858  in  the  temaics  of  the  infernal 
deities  attached  to  the  temple  of  Deraeter  at  Cnidus.  It 
is  at  present  deposited  in  the  British  Museum,  where  the 
curious  reader  may  inspect  it  in  the  second  vase-room. 

A  common  mode  of  advertising,  about  the  same  time, 
was  by  means  of  the  public  crier,  x^ju?*     ^"  comparatively 
modem   times   our  town<riers  have   been  proverbial  for 
murdering  the  king's  English,  or,  at  all  events,  of  robbing 
it  of  all  elecuiionary  beauties.     Not  so  among  the  Greeks, 
who  were  so  nice  in  point  of  oratorical  power,  and   so 
offended  by  a  vicious  pronunciation,  that  they  would  not 
suffer  even  the  public  crier  to  proclaim  their  laws  unless  he 
was  accompanied  by  a  musician,  who,  in  case  of  an  inexact 
tone,  might  be  ready  to  give  him  the  proper  pitch  and  ex- 
pression.    But  this  would  hardly  be  the  case  when  the 
public   crier   was   employed   by  private  individuals.      In 
Apuleius  ("Golden  Ass")  we   are   brought  face    to  face 
with  one  of  these  characters,  a  cunning  rogue,  full  of  low 
humour,  who  appears  to  have  combined  the  duties  of  crier 
and  auctioneer.     Thus,  when  the  slave  and  the  ass  are  led 
out  for  sale,  the  crier  proclaims  the  price  of  each  with  a 
loud  voice,  joking  at  the  same  time  to  the  best  of  his  abili- 
ties, in  order  to  keep  the  audience  in  good  humour.     This 
/alter  idea  has  not  been  lost  sight  of  in  more  modem  days. 
"  The  crier,  bawling  till  his  throat  was  almost  split,  cracked 
all  sorts  of  ridiculous  jokes  upon  me  [the  ass].       'What 
is  the  use,'  said  he,  'of  offering  for  sale  this  old  screw  of 
a  jackass,   with  his  foundered  hoofs,  his  ugly  colour,  his 
sluggishness   in    everything  but  vice,   and   a  hide  that  is 


I 


30  mSTOR  Y  OF  AD  VBR  TIS/yG. 

nothing  but  a  ready-made  sieve  ?  Let  us  even  make  a 
present  of  him,  if  we  can  find  any  one  who  will  not  be  loth 
to  throw  away  hay  on  the  brute.'  In  this  way  the  crier 
kept  the  bystanders  in  roars  of  laughter."  * 

The  same  story  furnishes  further  particulars  re- 
garding the  ancient  mode  of  crying.  When  Psyche  has 
absconded,  Venus  requests  Mercury  **  to  proclaim  her  in 
public,  and  announce  a  reward  to  him  who  shall  find  her." 
She  further  enjoins  the  divine  crier  to  **  clearly  describe 
the  marks  by  which  Psyche  may  be  recognised,  that  no 
one  may  excuse  himself  on  the  plea  of  ignorance,  if  he 
incurs  the  crime  of  unlawfully  concealing  her."  So  saying, 
she  gives  him  a  little  book,  in  which  is  written  Psyche's 
name  and  sundry  particulars.  Mercury  thereupon  descends 
to  the  earth,  and  goes  about  among  all  nations,  where  he 
thus  proclaims  the  loss  of  Psyche,  and  the  reward  for  her 
return  : — "  If  any  one  can  seize  her  in  her  flight,  and  brmg 
back  a  fugitive  daughter  of  a  king,  a  handmaid  of  Venus,  by 
name  Psyche,  or  discover  where  she  has  concealed  herself, 
let  such  person  repair  to  Mercury,  the  crier,  behind  the 
boundaries  of  Murtia.t  and  receive  by  way  of  reward  for 
the  discovery  seven  sweet  kisses  from  Venus  herself,  and 
one  exquisitely  delicious  touch  of  her  charming  tongue.*' 
A  somewhat  similar  reward  is  offered  by  Venus  in  the  hue 
and  cry  she  raises  after  her  fugitive  son  in  the  first 
idyl  of  Moschus,  a  Syracusan  poet  who  flourished  about 
250  years  before  the  Christian  era :  *'  If  any  one  has  see^_ 
my  son  Kros  straying  in  the  cross  roads,  [know  ye]  he  i^| 
a  runaway.  The  informer  shall  have  a  reward.  The  kiss 
of  Venus  shall  be  your  pay  ;  and  if  you  bring  him,  not  the 
bare  kiss  only,  but,   stranger,  you  shall  have  something 


*  ApuJeius,  Golden  Ass,  Book  viii,,  Episode  8. 
t  The  spot  here  mentioned  was  at  the  back  of  the  Temple  of  Vei 
Mynia  (the  myrtle  Venus),  on  Mount  Arenline  in  Rome. 


ANCIENT  FORMS  OF  ADVERTISING.  37 

more."  *  This  something  more  is  probably  the  "  quidquid 
post  oscula  dulce  "  of  Secundus,  but  is  sufficiently  vague  to 
be  anything  else,  and  certainly  promises  much  more  than 
the  "  will  be  rewarded  "  of  our  own  time. 

So  far  with  the  Greeks  and  their  advertisements.  Details 
grow  more  abundant  when  we  enter  upon  the  subject 
of  advertising  in  Rome.  The  cities  of  Herculaneum  and 
Pompeii,  buried  in  the  midst  of  their  sorrows  and  pleasures, 
their  joys  and  cares,  in  the  very  midst  of  the  turmoil  of 
life  and  commerce,  and  discovered  ages  after  exactly  as 
they  were  on  the  rooming  of  that  ominous  24th  of  August 
A.D.  79,  show  us  that  the  benefit  to  be  derived  from 
publicity  was  well  understood  in  those  luxurious  and 
highly-cultivated  cities.  The  walls  in  the  most  frequented 
parts  are  covered  with  notices  of  a  different  kind,  painted 
in  black  or  red.  Their  spelling  is  very  indifferent,  and 
the  painters  who  busied  themselves  with  this  branch  of  the 
profession  do  not  appear  to  have  aimed  at  anything  like 
artistic  uniformity  or  high  finish.  Still  these  advertise- 
ments, hasty  and  transitory  as  they  are,  bear  voluminous 
testimony  as  to  the  state  of  society,  the  wants  and  require- 
ments, and  the  actual  standard  of  public  taste  of  the 
Romans  in  that  age.  As  might  be  expected,  advertise- 
ments of  plays  and  gladiators  are  common.  Of  these  the 
public  were  acquainted  in  the  following  forms, — 

AEDILIS  .  FAMILIA  .  GLADIATORIA  .  PUGNABIT 

POMPEIS  ,  PR  .  K  .  JUNTAS  .  VENATIO  ET  VELA 

ERUNT. 

or, 


i\ 


N  .  FESTI  AMPLIATI  ~    g" 

FAMILIA  GLADIATORIA  .  PUGNA  ITERUM  -s  I   S 

PUGNA  .  XVI  .  K  .  JVN  .   VENAT  .  VELA-f  ^    §  *t 

'!| 

•  Apuleius,  Book  vi.  \ 

+  That  is,  •'  The  troop  of  gladiators  of  the  asdil  will  fight  on  the 
31st  of  May.    There  will  be  fights  with  wild  animals,  and  an  awning 


38 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


Such  inscriptions  occur  in  various  parts  of  Pompeii,  some- 
times written  on  smooth  surfaces  between  pilasters  (de- 
nominated aibua\  at  other  times  painted  on  the  walls. 
Places  of  great  resort  were  selected  for  preference,  and  thus 
it  is  that  numerous  advertisements  are  found  under  the 
portico  of  the  baths  at  Pompeii,  where  persons  waited  for 
admission,  and  where  notices  of  shows,  exhibitions,  or 
sales  would  be  sure  to  attract  the  attention  of  the  weary 
lounger. 

Baths  we  find  advertised  in  the  following  terms, — 

THERMAE 
M  .  CRASSI  FRUGH 

AQUA  .  MARINA  .  ET  .  BALN. 
AQUA  .  DULCI  .  JANUARIUS  .  I. 

which  of  course  means  **warm,  sea,  and  fresh  water 
baths.''  As  provincials  add  to  their  notices  "  as  in 
London/'  or  '*  k  la  mode  de  Paris,"  so  Pompeians  and 
others  not  unfrequently  proclaimed  that  they  followed  the 
customs  of  Rome  at  their  several  establishments.  Thus 
the  keeper  of  a  bathing-house  near  Bologna  acquainted  the 
public  that — 

IN  .  PRAEDIS 
C  .  LEGIANNl  VERI 
BALNEUM  .  MORE  .  URBICO  .  LAVAT. 
OMNIA  COMMODA  .  PRAESTANTUR. 


to  keep  off  the  sun."  Wiiid  and  weather  permitting,  there  i 
awnings  over  ihe  heads  of  the  spectators  ;  but,  generally,  there  ap- 
peftrs  to  have  been  too  mucli  wind  in  this  brcery  summer  retreat  Xo 
admit  ofthis  luxury.  "  Nnm  vcnius  populo  vela  ncgare  solct,"  says  Mar- 
tial, and  Ihe  same  idea  occurs  in  three  other  places  in  this  poet's  works 
\y'\.  9;  xi.  3t  ;  xiv.  29).  Sometimes,  al&o,  the  bills  of  gladiators  pro- 
mise i/^trHonrs,  which  coiuisled  in  certain  sprinklings  of  water  per- 
fumed with  saffron  or  other  odours  ;  and,  as  they  produced  what  was 
called  a  nimbus  or  cloud,  the  i>crfumes  were  probably  dispersed  over 
Ihe  audience  in  drops  by  means  of  pipes  or  spouts,  or,  perhaps,  by 
some  kind  of  mde  enjpne. 


li 


ANCIENT  FORMS  OF  ADVERT/SING,  39 

At  his  establishments  there  were  baths  according  to  the 
fashion  of  "  the  town,"  besides  "  every  convenience."  And 
a  similar  inscription  occurred  by  the  Via  Nomentana,  eight 
miles  from  Rome — 

IN^  .  PRAEDIS  .  AURE 

LIAE  .  PAUSTINIANAE 

DAUNEUS  .  LAV  AT  .  MO 

RE  .  URBICO  .  ET  0MN1& 

HUMANITAS  .  PRAESTA 

TUR. 

Those  who  had  premises  to  let  or  sell  afiixed  a  short 
notice  to  the  house  itself,  and  more  detailed  bills  were 
posted  at  the  "advertising  stations."  Thus  in  Plautus's 
**Trinummus/'  Act  v.,  the  indignant  Callicles  says  to  his 
spendthrift  son,  "  You  have  dared  to  put  up  in  my  absence, 
and  unknown  to  me,  that  this  house  is  to  be  sold" — 
("  iCdes  venales  hasce  inscribit  Uteris  *').  Sometimes,  also, 
the  inscription,  *' lUicoaedes  venales"  ("here  is  a  house  for 
sale")  appears  to  have  been  painted  on  the  door,  or  on  the 
album.  An  auctioneer  would  describe  a  house  as  **  Villa 
bona  beneque  edificata"  (a  good  and  well-built  house),  and 
full  details  of  the  premises  were  given  in  the  larger  placards 
painted  on  walls.  In  the  street  of  the  Fullers  in  Pompeii 
occurs  the  following  inscription,  painted  in  red,  over 
another  which  had  been  painted  in  black  and  white- 
washed over,— 

IN  .  PRAEDIS  .  JUUAE  .  S  .  P  .  F  .  FELICIS 

LOCANTUR 

BALNEUM  .  VENEREUM  .  ET  .  NONGENTUM  .  PERGULAE 

CENACULA  .  EX  .  IDIDUS  ,  AUG  .  PR10R13  .  IN  .  ISUS  .  AUG 

SEXTAS  .  ANNOS  .  CONTINUOS  .  QUINQUE. 

S.Q.D.L.E.N.C. 

Which  has  been  translated,  "  On  the  estate  of  Julia  Felix, 
daughter  of  Spurius  Fehx,  are  to  let  from  the  xst  to  the 


40  iriSTOR  Y  OF  AD  VER  TISING. 

6\h  of  the  ides  of  August  (/>.,  bctweeii  August  6th  am 
8th),  on  a  lease  of  five  years,  a  bath,  a  venereum,  and  nine 
hundred  shops,  bowers,  and  upper  apartments."  *  The 
seven  final  initials,  antiquaries,  who  profess  to  read  what 
to  others  is  unreadable,  explain,  *'  They  are  not  to  let  to 
any  person  exercising  an  infamous  profession."  But  as 
this  seems  a  singular  clause  where  there  is  a  venereum  to 
be  let,  other  erudites  have  seen  in  it,  "  Si  quis  donnnam  loci 
eius  non  cognoveHt,"  and  fancy  that  they  read  underneath, 
"  Adeat  Suettum  Verum,"  in  which  case  the  whole  should 
mean,  "  if  anybody  should  not  know  the  lady  of  the 
house,  let  him  go  to  Suettus  Verus."  The  following  is_ 
another  example  of  the  way  in  which  Roman  landlor< 
advertised  "  desirable  residences,"  and  "  commodioi 
business  premises  "— 

INSULA  ARRIANA 

POLLTANA  .  GX  .  ALIF  I  .  NIGID  I  MAI 

LOCANTUR  .  EX  .  1  .  JULIS  .  PRIMIS  .  TABERNAB 

CUM  .  PERGULIS  .  SUIS  .  ET  COENACULA 

EQUESTRIA  .  ET  .  DOMUS  .  CONDUCTOR 

CONVENITO  .  PRIMUM  GN  .  ALIF  I 

NIGID  I   .  MAI  SER. 

Said  to  mean,    "  In  the  Arrian  PoUIan   block  of  hous< 
the    property   of    Cn,     Alifius    Nigidius,    senior,    are    tc^ 
let  from  the  first  of  the  ides  of  July,  shops  with  their 


*  Nine  hundred  shops  in  a  town  which  would  hardly  contain  more 
than  about  twelve  hundred  is  rather  incredible— perhaps  it  should  be 
ninety,  /^crgula  were  cither  porticos  shaded  with  venlure,  lattices 
with  creeping  plants,  or  small  rooms  above  the  shops,  bedrooms  Cor 
the  »hopkee{>cr!».  Ccttwcuh  ueic  rooms  under  the  terraces.  When 
tli«7^  were  good  enough  tg  let  to  the  higher  classes  they  were  called 
eqnatria  (as  in  the  following  advert>i»emeii1).  Plutarch  inronns  us 
that  Sylla,  in  his  younger  days,  lived  in  one  of  Lhcm,  where  he  paid  A 
rent  of/^8  a  year. 


HADRinTlI\IV5 


Lvcrvs 


la  t/teif  Jaada  imd  Jw^tmriktt  in  ikt 


ANCIENT  FORMS  OF  ADVERTISING, 


4« 


and   gentlemen's    apartments.      The   hirer    must 
apply  lo  the  slave  of  Cn.  Alifius  Nigldius,  senior." 

Both  the  Greeks  and  the  Romans  had  on  their  houses 
a  piece  of  the  wall  whitened  to  receive  inscriptions  relative 
to  their  affairs.  The  first  called  this  XjuxaiMa,  the  latter 
album.  Many  examples  of  them  are  found  in  Pompeii, 
generally  in  very  inferior  writing  and  spelling.  Even 
the  schoolmaster  Valentinus,  who  on  his  album,  as 
was  the  constant  practice,  invoked  the  patronage  of  some 
high  personages,  was  very  loose  in  his  grammar,  and 
the  untoward  outbreak  of  Vesuvius  has  perpetuated  his 
blundering  use  of  an  accusative  instead  of  an  ablative  : 
"  Cum  discentes  suos."  All  the  Pompeian  inscriptions 
mentioned  above  were  painted,  but  a  few  instances  also 
occur  of  notices  being  merely  scratched  on  the  wall.  Thus 
we  find  in  one  place,  **  Damas  audi,"  and  on  a  pier  at  the 
angle  of  the  house  of  the  tragic  poet  is  an  Eiruscan  in- 
scription scratched  in  the  wall  with  a  nail,  which  has  been 
translated  by  a  leanied  Neapolitan,  "  You  shall  hear  a 
poem  of  Numerius."  But  these  so-called  Etruscan  inscrip- 
tions are  by  no  means  so  well  understood  as  we  could  wish, 
and  their  interpretation  is  far  from  incontestable.  There 
is  another  on  a  house  of  Pompeii,  which  has  been  Latinised 
into,  "  Ex  hinc  viatoriens  ante  turri  xii  inibi.  Sarinus 
"  Publii  cauponatur.  Ut  adires.  Vale."  That  is,  "  Traveller, 
going  from  here  to  the  twelfth  tower,  there  Sarinus  keeps 
a  tavern.  This  is  to  request  you  to  enter.  Farewell."  This 
inscription,  however,  is  so  obscure  that  another  savant  has 

Rad  in  it  a  notification  that  a  certain  magistrate,  Adircns 
lius,  had  brought  the  waters  of  the  Sarno  to  Pompeii — 
most  material  difference  certainly. 
We  are  made  acquainted  with  other  Roman  bills  and 
inivertisements  by  the  works  of  the  poets  and  dramatists, 
Khus  at  Trimalchion's  banquet,  in  the  "Saiyricon,"  Pliny 
entions  that  a  poet  hired  a  house,  buiit  an  oratory,  hired 
rms,  and  dispersed  prospectuses.     They  also  read  iheit 


41  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTTSmC. 

works  publicly,*  an  occupation  in  which  they  were  much 
interrupted  and  annoyed  by  idlers  and  imperiinent  boys. 
Another  mode  of  advertising  new  works  more  resembled 
that  of  our  own  country.  The  Roman  booksellers  used 
to  placard  their  shops  with  the  titles  of  the  new  books  ihey 
had  for  sale.  Such  was  the  shop  of  Atrectus,  described  by 
Martial — 


Contn  Caesnris  est  fomm  tabema 
Scriptis  posubus  hinc  ct  inde  todi 
Omnea  ut  cito  perlegas  poelas 
Illinc  me  pete. 


A 


*  A.  L.  MilUn,  Description  d'un  Mos&iqae  antique  du  Mus^  Flo. 
Clcmentin,  4  Rome,  1S19,  p.  9. 


CHAPTER   IV- 


V£D/.erAL  AND  OTHER  VARIETIES  OF  ADVERTISING, 


^^a: 

w. 


IN  the  ages  which  immediately  succeeded  the  fall  of  the 
Roman  Empire,  and  the  western  migration  of  the 
arbarian  hordes,  darkness  and  ignorance  held  paramount 
ay,  education  was  at  a  terrible  discount,  and  the  arts  of 
ading  and  writing  were  confined  almost  entirely  to  the 
monks  and  the  superior  clergy.  In  fact,  ic  was  regarded 
as  evidence  of  effeminacy  for  any  knight  or  noble  to  be  able 
to  make  marks  on  parchment  or  vellum,  or  to  be  able  to 
decipher  them  when  made.  Newspapers  were,  of  course, 
things  undreamt  of,  but  newsmen — itinerants  who  collected 
scraps  of  information  and  retailed  them  in  the  towns  and 
market-places — were  now  and  again  to  be  found.  The 
travelling  packman  or  pedlar  was,  however,  the  chief 
medium  of  intercommunication  in  the  Middle  Ages,  and 
it  is  not  hard  to  imagine  how  welcome  his  appearance  must 
have  been  in  those  days,  when  a  hundred  miles  constituted 
an  immense  and  almost  interminable  journey.  W'c  know 
how  bad  the  roads  were,  and  how  dlfhcult  travelling  was  in 
comparatively  modem  days,  but  we  can  form  very  little  idea 
of  the  obstacles  which  beset  all  attempts  at  the  communi- 
cation of  one  commercial  centre  with  another  in  the  early 
Middle  Ages.  Everybody  being  alike  shrouded  in  the  dark- 
ness of  ignorance,  it  is  safe  to  assume,  therefore,  that  written 
advertisements  were  quite  unknown,  as  few  beyond  those 
ho  had  written  them  would  have  been  able  to  understand 
era.  Nearly  the  whole  of  the  laity,  from  the  king  to  the 
villain  or  thrall,  were  equally  illiterate,  and  once  more  the 


nrSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


J 


public  crier  became  the  only  medium  for  obtaining  pub- 
licity ;  but  from  the  simple  mode  in  which  all  business 
was  conducted  his  position  was  probably  a  sinecure.  An 
occasional  proclamation  of  peace  or  war,  or  a  sale  of  slaves 
or  plunder,  was  probably  the  only  topic  which  gave  hina 
the  opportunity  of  exercising  his  eloquence.  But  with  the 
increase  of  civilisation,  and  consequent  wealth  and  com*™ 
petition,  the  crier's  labours  assumed  a  wider  field.  ^ 

The  mediaeval  crier  used  to  carry  a  horn,  by  means  of 
which  he  attracted  the  people's  attention  when  about  to 
make  a  proclamation  or  publication.     Public  criers  appear 
to  have  formed  a  well-organised  body  in  France  as  early 
as  the   twelfth   century ;  for  by  a  charter  of  Louis  VII.^ 
granted  in  the  year  1141  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  pro- 
vince of  Berry,  the  old  custom  of  the  country  was  con-^ 
firmed,  according  to  which  there  were  to  be  only  twelvofl 
criers,  five  of  which  should  go  about  the  taverns  crying^^ 
with  their  usual  cry,  and  carrying  with  them  samples  of  the 
wine  they  cried,  in  order  that  the  people  might  taste.     For 
the  first  time  they  blew  the  horn  they  were  entitled  to  a 
penny,  and  the  same  for  every  time  after,  according  to 
custom.     These  criers  of  wine  were  a  French  peculiarity, 
of  which  we  find  no  parallel  in   the  history  of  England. 
They  perambulated  the  streets  of  Paris  in  troops,  each  with 
a  large  wooden  measure  of  wine  in  his  hand,  from  which  J 
to  make  the  passers-by  taste  the  wine  they  proclaimed,  dH 
mode  of  advertising  which  would  be  very  agreeable  in  the^ 
present  day,  but  which  would,  wc  fancy,  be  rather  too  suc- 
cessful for  the  advertiser.    These  wine-criers  are  mentioned 
by  John  de  Garlando,  a  Norman  writer,  who  was  probably 
a  contemporary  of  William  the  Conqueror      "  Praecones 
vini,"  says  he,  "clamant  hiante  gula,  vinum  venumdandum 
in  tabemis  ad  quatuor  denarios."*     A  quaint  and  signifi- 


•  Glossary,  cap.  xxvii.    *•  Winc-criers  cry  with  open  moulh  the 
hich  U  for  sale  in  tlic  taverns  at  four  farthings." 


MEDIMVAL  ADVEXTIZiyG.  ^ 

cant  story  is  told  in  an  old  chrocicCe  is  cyz^tic^-yz  'rrs 
this  system  of  adveitistng.  An  old  B-nm-  r-Eirrrf  .^6?i- 
heid,  was  possessed  of  a  strong  dcsL-e  lo  pfora-r-!  tit  W^ars 
of  God,  but  not  having  Isngs  stiSdrztlj  poirtrf^Z  far  tic 
noisy  propagation  contemplated  br  bsr.  ii-e  zaSi  a  -v-ise- 
crier  to  go  about  the  town,  acd,  xn5r*2.d  c^  pr^^j^isdrss  tiis 
prices  of  the  wine,  to  proclaioi  Oiese  sacr*-;  wjrtt :  -  G>S 
is  righteous !  God  is  merdibl !  God  is  rcof  a^f  txc^ 
lent  !*•  And  as  the  man  went  aboct  saocr-.g  -.'-Me  w^-is 
she  followed  him,  exclaiming,  ^He  spczks  wel:  bt  tsrt 
truly ! "  The  poor  old  body  hardiy  soccecf  cd  accardirjg 
to  her  pious  desire,  for  she  was  arrestee  and  trrcd.  azid  as 
it  was  thought  she  had  done  this  03t  of  rz^ttr  -^ca^i^a  lausz: 
humana),  she  was  burred  a]:ve.*  Frj»z:  ihij  :i  ••-ji'.i  sr^rr 
that  there  was  as  much  prolecdoz  fc-r  '^e  =>■:;-'£.£  i-.  -_irj^ 
profession  as  for  the  criers,  who  were  t-tt  yr'jj.'i  cjf  titir 
special  prerogatives. 

The  public  criers  in  France,  at  a::  eir>  p»*rl:*d.  ■■tre 
formed  into  a  corporation,  and  in  1255  obti:r,*rd  V2.r--j-s 
statutes  from  Philip  Augustus,  son:e  of  wi:-,>_  rtlit.-r  t'j 
the  criers  of  wine,  are  excessivelj  czr.'yis-  Tlzs  ;t  Tts 
ordained  that — 

•*  WTiosoever  b  a  crier  in  Paris  siar  go  to  a-v  t^v^r-.  ':,* 
likes  and  cry  its  wine,  providei  thtr  st.I  w.-e  fr-.—  *.-* 
wood,  and  that  there  is  no  other  crier  e:r,p!oTtd  :vr  \:.sX 
tavern  ;  and  the  tavern-keeper  car.3ot  prohii/i:  ;.:nL 

"  If  a  crier  finds  people  drir.kins  in  a  lave.T.,  he  nuij  s-ik 
what  they  pay  for  the  wine  they  crir-k  ;  and  he  i^iT  ^o  out 
and  cry  the  wine  at  the  prices  they  pay.  whether  the  t£v*rr.- 
keeper  wishes  it  or  not,  provided  always  that  there  l/e  l.o 
other  crier  employed  for  that  tavern, 

"If  a  tavern-keeper  sells  wine  in  Paris  ar.d  err.p-oys  r.o 
crier,  and  closes  his  door  against  the  criers,  the  crier  m^y 


*  Chronicles  of  the  Mock  AJbcric  des  Trois  F'^niiine*,  E-i-ier  ibe 
year  1235. 


HISTORY  Of  ADPERTISmC, 


That  criers  used  horns,  as  in  France,  appears  from  the  will 
of  a  citizen  of  Bristol,  dated  1388,  who,  disposing  of  some 
house  property,  desires  '*  that  the  tenements  so  bequeathed 
shall  be  sold  separately  by  the  sound  of  the  trumpet  at  the 
high  cross  of  Bristol,  without  any  fraud  or  collusion."  In 
Ipswich  it  was  still  customary  in  the  last  century  to  pro- 
claim the  meetings  of  the  town  council,  the  previous  night 
at  twelve  o'clock,  by  the  sound  of  a  large  horn,  which  is 
still  preserved  in  the  town  hall  of  that  borough.  These 
horns  were  provided  by  the  mayors  of  the  different  towns. 

The  public  crier,  then,  was  the  chief  oi^an  by  which  the 
medieval  shopkeeper,  in  the  absence  of  what  we  now  know 
as  "advertising  mediums,"  obtained  publicity:  it  was  also 
customary  for  most  traders  to  have  touters  at  their  doors,  who 
did  duty  as  living  advertisements.  In  low  neighbourhoods 
this  system  still  obtains,  especially  in  connection  with  cheap 
photographic  establishments,  whose  "doorsmen"  select  aa 
a  rule  the  most  improbable  people  for  their  attentions,  but 
compensate  for  this  by  their  pertinacity  and  glibness.  Pos- 
sibly the  triumph  is  the  greater  when  the  customer  has  been 
persuaded  quite  out  of  his  or  her  original  intentions.  Most 
trades,  in  early  times,  were  almost  exclusively  confined  to 
certain  streets,  and  as  all  the  shops  were  alike  unpretending, 
and  open  to  the  gaze — in  fact,  were  stalls  or  booths — it 
behoved  the  shopkeeper  to  do  something  in  order  to  attract 
customers.  This  he  effected  sometimes  by  means  of  a 
glaring  sign,  sometimes  by  means  of  a  man  or  youth  stand^ 
ing  at  the  door,  and  vociferating  with  the  fuU  power  of  h^H 
lungs,  "  What  d'ye  lack,  sir?  what  d'ye  lack  ?"  Our  country 
rtSTathcr  deficient  in  that  kind  of  mediaeval  literature  known 
in  France  as  i^ufs  and /a/f/iaux,  which  teem  with  allusions  to 
this  custom  of  touting,  which  is  noticeable,  though,  in  Lyd- 
gate's  ballad  of  "  London  Lyckpenny"  (Lack-penny),  writien 
in  the  first  half  of  the  fifteenth  century.  There  we  see  tl 
shopmen  standing  at  the  door,  trying  to  outbawl  each 
to  gain  the  custom  of  the  passers-by.     The  spicer  or  gri 


O  ¥tM  M  O,  OR  A  Nku  Cavkft. 


"IHK  ailLMAM  or  UtilDDM. 


I  hi  f/.Y-.t/oii'j  Sttatui  .\'i[ht'a  n'ittJtt      1608-9. 


MEDIEVAL  ADVERTlSlNCk 


49 


bids  the  Kentish  countryman  to  come  and  buy  some  spfce, 
pepper,  or  saffron.  In  Cbeapside,  the  mercers  bewilder  him 
wiih  their  velvet,  siJk,  and  lawn,  and  lay  violent  hands  on 
him,  in  order  to  show  him  their  "  Paris  thread,  the  finest  in 
the  land,"  Throughout  all  Canwick  (now  Cannon  Street), 
he  is  persecuted  by  drapers,  who  offer  him  cloth ;  and  in 
other  parts,  particularly  in  East  Cheap,  the  keepers  of  the 
eating-houses  sorely  tempt  him  with  their  cries  of  '*  Hot 
sheep's  feet,  fresh  maqurel,  pies,  and  ribs  of  beef"  At  last 
he  falls  a  prey  to  the  templing  invitation  of  a.  taverner,  who 
makes  up  to  him  from  his  door  with  a  cringing  bow,  and 
taking  him  by  the  sleeve,  pronounces  the  words,  *'Sir,  will 
you  try  our  wine?"  with  such  an  insinuating  and  irresistible 
accent,  that  the  Kentish  man  enters  and  spends  his  only 
penny  in  that  tempting  and  hospitable  house.  Worthy  old 
Stow  supposes  this  interesting  incident  to  have  happened 
at  the  l*o|>c's  Head,  in  Comhill,  and  bids  us  enjoy  the 
knowledge  of  the  fact,  that  for  his  one  penny  the  country- 
man had  a  pint  of  wine,  and  "  for  bread  nothing  did  he  pay, 
for  that  was  allowed  free"  in  those  good  old  days.  Free 
luncheons,  though  rare  now,  were  commonly  bestowed  in 
the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries  on  regular  drinkers; 
and  the  practice  of  giving  food  to  those  who  pay  for  drink  \% 
still  current  in  many  parts  of  the  United  Slates.  The  "  I^ck- 
penny"  story  is  one  of  the  few  instances  in  English  litera 
ture  of  this  early  period,  in  which  tlie  custom  of  touting  at 
shop  doors  is  distinctly  mentioned,  but,  as  before  remarked, 
the  French  Jahliaux  abound  with  such  allusions.  In  the 
slor>-  of  "  Courtois  d'Arras" — a  travestie  of  the  Prodigal  Son 
in  a  thirteenth-centur)'  garb — Courtois  finds  the  host  stand- 
ing at  hb  door  shouting,  "  Bon  vin  de  Soissons,  h  six  deniers 
Ic  lot."  And  in  a  mediaeval  mystery  entitled  "Li  Jus  de 
S.  Nicolas,"  the  innkeeper,  standing  on  the  threshold,  roars 
out,  that  in  his  house  excellent  dinners  are  to  be  had,  with 
warm  bread  and  warm  herrings,  and  barrelfuls  of  Auxerre 
wine:  **C^ns  il  fait  bon  diner,  cdans  il  y  a  pain  chaud  et 


50 


nrSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


harengs  chauds,  et  vin  d'Auxerre  \  plein  tonneau.**  In  the 
"Trois  Aveugles  de  Compifegne,"  the  thirsty  wanderers  hear 
wine  host  proclaiming  in  the  street  that  he  has  '*good,  cool, 
and  new  wine,  from  Auxerre  and  from  Soissons;  bread 
and  meat,  and  wine  and  fish :  within  is  a  good  place  to 
spend  your  money  \  within  is  accommodation  for  all  kind 
of  people  ;  here  is  good  lodging  :" — 

Ci  a  bon  vin  fres  et  nouvel 
^a  d'Auxcrrc,  9a  dc  Soissona, 
Pain,  et  char,  et  vin,  et  poissoa% 
C(^cns  fct  bon  dcspendrc  argent, 
Ostcl  i  a  ^  toute  gent 
C^cns  fct  moult  bon  hcbcrger. 


And  in  the  "  D^bats  et  fac^tieuses  rencontres  de  Gringald  et 
de  Guillot  Gorgen,  son  maistre,"  the  servant,  who  would  not 
pay  his  reckoning,  excuses  himself,  saying,  "The  tavemer 
is  more  to  blame  than  I,  for  as  i  passed  before  his  door» 
and  he  being  seated  at  it  as  usual,  called  to  me,  say- 
ing, MVill  you  be  pleased  to  breakfast  here?  I  have  good 
bread,  good  wine,  and  good  meat.'"  "Le  tavernier  a 
plus  de  tort  que  moy ;  car,  passant  devant  sa  porle,  ct  luy 
^tant  assiz  (ainsy  qu'ils  sonc  ordinairemcnt)  il  me  cria,  me 
disant :  Vous  plaist-il  de  dejeuner  cdans?  II  y  a  de  bon 
pain,  de  bon  vin,  et  de  bonne  viande." 

Other  modes  of  advertising,  of  a  less  obtrusive  natu 
were,  however,  in  use  at  the  same  time,  as  in  Rome,  written 
handbills  were  affixed  in  public  places;  and  almost  as  soon 
as  the  art  of  printing  was  discovered,  it  was  applied  to  the 
purpose  of  multiplying  advertisements  of  this  kind.  We 
may  fairly  assume  that  one  of  the  very  first  posters  ever 
printed  in  England  was  that  by  which  Caxton  announced, 
circa  1480,  the  sale  of  the  "Pyes  of  Salisbury  use,"*  at  t! 


J 


1 


•  No  savoury  meat-j)ie»,  as  some  gastronomic  reader  might  ttilnlc, 
lince  they  came  from  the  coiinly  of  sausage  celebrity,  but  a  collection 
of  rules,  as  practised  in  the  diocese  of  Salisbury,  to  show  the  prie&ti 


A 


MEDJj^VAL  ADVERTISING. 


veil 


Red  Polcj  in  the  Almonn-,  Westminster.  Of  this  first  of 
broadsides  two  copies  are  still  extant,  one  in  the  Bodleian 
Library,  at  Oxford,  the  other  in  Earl  Spencer's  library. 
Their  dimensions  are  five  inches  by  seven,  and  their  con- 
tents as  follows : — 

I:f  ft  pUiidc  on^  man  epiritud  or  ttmportl  to  bot  dttr  pgffl 
of  tbjo  or  tfjre  comtmotacio's  of  ^alisburt  usr*  rmpTDntrti  nftrr 
l[)t  form  of  t|)i3  prrst't  Ittrf,  toljitbe  btn  faucl  antj  Irulu  forrcct^ 
late  \^\  come  to  ^t^rstmonfetcr,  into  llje  almontstrue  at  \\t 
nc^  polt  anti  \i  si}al  b^uc  ifjttn  noo'O  anti  i\z^t : 

^upplico  0tct  cctiula. 

Foreigners  appear  to  have  appreciated  the  boon  of  this 
kind  of  advertising  equally  rapidly,  although,  from  the  fugi- 
tive nature  of  such  productions,  copies  of  tticir  posters  are 
ra'-ely  to  be  found.  Still  an  interesting  list  of  books,  printed 
by  Coburgcr  at  Nuremberg  in  the  fifteenth  century,  is  pre- 
served in  the  British  Museum,  to  which  b  attached  the 
following  heading:  "  Cupientes  emere  libros  infra  notatos 
venicnt  ad  hospitium  subnotatum,"  &c. — 1>.,  "Those  who 

h  to  buy  the  books  hereunder  mentioned,  must  come  to 
house  now  named,"  &c.  The  Parisian  printers  soon 
went  a  step  further.  Long  before  the  invention  of  the 
typographic  art,  the  University  had  compelled  the  book- 
sellers to  advertise  in  their  shop  windows  any  new  manu- 
scripts lliey  might  obtain,  But  after  the  invention  of 
printing  they  soon  commenced  to  proclaim  the  wonderful 
cheapness  of  the  works  they  produced.  It  did  not  strike 
them,  however,  that  this  might  have  been  done  effectually 
oa  A  large  scale,  and  they  were  content  to  extol  the  low 
price  of  the  work  in  the  book  itself.  Such  notices  as  the 
following  are  common  in  early  books.      Uiric  Gering,  in 


how  to  deal,  unrler  every  possible  variation  in  Easter,  with  the  concur^ 
tence  of  more  than  one  office  on  the  same  day.  These  rules  varied  in 
(be  dilTcrcnt  dioceses. 


52 


NJSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


J 


his  "Corpus  Juris  Canonici,"  1500,  allays  the  fear  of  the 
public  with  a  distich  : — *'  Don't  run  away  on  account  of  tht 
price/*  he  says.  *' Come  rich  and  poor;  this  excellent  wor 
is  sold  for  a  very  sraall  sum : " — 


Ne  fugile  ob  pretiiim  :  dives  paiiperque  venite 
Hoc  opus  cxcelJens  veu<ii[ur  sere  brevi. 


I 


Berthold  RemboUtt  subjoins  to  his  edition  of  "S.  Bruno  on 
ihe  Psalms,"  1509,  the  information  that  he  does  not  lo 
away  his  wares  (books)  like  a  miser,  but  that  anybody 
carry  them  away  for  very  little  money. 


Istns  Bcrlboldus  mcrces  non  cbudit  amms 
Exigius  nammis  has  stndiose  geres. 


ockfl 
caifl 


And  in  his  "Corpus  Jaris  Canonici,"  he  boasts  that  this 
splendid  volume  is  to  be  had  for  a  trifling  sum,  after  having, 
with  considerable  labour,  been  weeded  of  its  misprints.       ^_ 

Hoc  tibi  prxclarum  modico  pntet  sere  volumen  ^| 

Ab^tersum  mendis  non  sine  Martc  suis. 

Thiclman  Kerver,  Jean  Petit,  and  various  other  printers, 
give  similar  intelligence  to  the  purchasers  of  their  works. 
Sometimes  they  even  resort  to  (he  process  of  having  a  book 
puffed  on  account  of  its  cheapness  by  editors  or  scholars  of 
known  eminence,  who  address  the  public  on  behalf  of  tti^| 
printer.  Thus  in  a  work  termed  by  the  French  savan^^ 
Chevillier,  "Les  Opuscules  du  Docteur  Alniain,"  printed 
by  Chevalon  and  Gourmont,  151S,  a  certain  dignified  mem- 
ber of  the  University  condescends  to  inform  the  public  that 
they  have  to  be  grateful  to  the  publishers  for  the  beautiful 
and  cheap  book  they  have  produced  : — '*  Gratias  agant 
Clnudio  Chcvallon  et  -^Egjdio  Gourmont^  qui  pulchris  typia 
et  characteritus  impressura  opus  hoc  vili  dart  prctio."  This, 
be  it  obser\'ed,  is  the  earliest  instance  of  the  puff  direct 
which  has  so  far  been  discovered.  ^| 

Meanwhile,  though  the  art  of  printing  had  become  estal>^* 
lishcd,  and  was  daily  taking  more  and  more  work  out  of 


d 


MEDTMVAL  ADVERTISTKG. 


53 


the  hands  of  scribes,  writing  continued  to  be  almost  the  only 
advertising  media  for  wellnigh  two  centuries  longer.  Like 
the  ancient  advertisement  already  noticed,  that  of  Venus 
about  her  runaway  son,  they  commenced  almost  invariably 
with  the  words  "  If  anybody,"  or,  if  in  Latin,  Si  quis ;  and 
&ora  these  last  two  words  they  obtained  their  name.  They 
were  posted  in  the  most  frequented  parts  of  the  towns,  pre- 
ferably near  churches ;  and  hence  has  survived  the  practice 
of  attaching  to  church  doors  lists  of  voters  and  various 
other  notifications,  particularly  in  villages.  In  the  metropolis 
one  of  the  places  used  for  this  purpose  may  probably  have 
been  London  Stone.  In  "  Pasquil  and  Marforius,"  1589, 
we  read,  "Set  up  this  bill  at  London  Stone;  let  it  be  done 
solemnly  with  drum  and  trumpet ; "  and  further  on  in  the 
same  pamphlet,  "  If  it  please  them,  these  dark  winter  nights, 
to  stick  up  these  papers  upon  London  Stone."  These  two 
allusions  are,  however,  not  particularly  conclusive. 

In  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries  the  principal 
place  for  alBxing  a  siquis  was  in  the  middle  aisle  of  St 
Paul's.  From  the  era  of  the  Reformation  to  the  Restora- 
tion, all  sorts  of  disorderly  conduct  was  practised  in  the  old 
cathedral.  A  lengthy  catalogue  of  improper  customs  and 
disgusting  practices  might  be  collected  from  the  works  of 
tlie  period,  and  bills  were  stuck  up  in  various  parts  to  re- 
strain the  grossest  abuses.  "  At  every  door  of  this  church," 
.ys  Wecver,  "  was  anciently  this  vers  depicted  ;  and  in  my 
e  [he  died  in  1633]  it  might  be  perfectly  read  at  the 
t  south  door,  Hlc  Locus  sacer  est^  hie  nuUi  min^ere  fas 


There  were  also  within  the  sacred  edifice  tobacco,  book, 
"and  sempstress'  shops ;  there  was  a  pillar  at  which  serving- 
men  stood  for  hire,  and  another  place  where  laft7ers  had 
their  regular  stands,  like  merchants  on  'Change.  At  the 
period  when  Decker  wrote  his  curious  **  Gull's  Horn- Book'' 
(1609).  and  for  many  years  after,  the  cathedral  was  the 
lounging  place  for  all  idlers  and  hunters  after  news,  as  well 


S4  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 

as  of  men  of  almost  every  profession,  cheats,  usurers,  antT 
knights  of  the  post.  The  cathedral  was  likewise  a  seat  of 
traffic  and  negotiation,  even  pimps  and  procuresses  had 
their  stations  there;  and  the  font  itself,  if  credit  may  be  given 
to  a  black-letter  tract  on  the  '*  Detestable  Use  of  Dice-play/* 
printed  early  in  Elizabeth's  reign,  was  made  a  place  for  the 
advance  and  paymcntof  loans,  and  the  sealing  of  indentures 
and  obligations  for  the  security  of  the  moneys  borrowed. 
Such  a  busy  haunt  was,  of  course,  the  very  best  place  for 
bills  and  advertisements  to  be  posted. 

No  boni  fide  sipiis  has  come  down  to  us,  but  it  appears 
that  among  them  the  applications  for  ecclesiastics  were  very 
common,  as  Bishop  Earle  in  his  "Microcosmographia,"  pub- 
lished in  1629,  describes  "  Paul's  Waike  "  as  the  "market 
of  young  lecturers,  whom  you  may  cheapen  here  at  all  rates 
and  sizes;"  and  this  allusion  is  confirmed  by  a  passage  in 
Bishop  Hall's  "Satires"  (R  ii.  s.  5),  in  which  also  the  cus- 
tom of  affixing  advertisements  to  a  particular  door  is  dis- 
tinctly noticed  : — 

Saw'st  thou  ere  struts  patch'd  on  Paul's  church  door 

To  wck  some  vacant  vicarage  before  ? 

Who  wants  a  churchman  that  can  service  say, 

Kead  fast  and  fair  his  monthly  homily, 

And  wed,  and  bury,  and  moke  cristen  souls. 

Come  to  the  Uftside  alUy  of  St  Poule's. 

But  the  siquis  door  was  not  confined  to  notices  of  cede 
siastical  matters  ;  it  was  appropriated  generally  to  the  variety 
of  applications  that  is  now  to  be  found  in  the  columns  of  a 
newspaper  or  the  books  of  a  registry  office.  Though  no 
authentic  specimens  of  the  s'tquis  remain,  we  ate  possessed 
of  several  imitations,  as  the  old  dramatists  delighted  in  re- 
producing the  inflated  language  of  these  documents.  Thus, 
in  Holiday's  '*  Technogamia  "  (1618),  Act  i.  scene  7,  Geo- 
graphus  sets  up  the  following  notice  : — 

ir  there  be  any  gentleman  that,  for  the  accomplishing  of  his  natural 
endowment,  intertaynes  a  desire  of  learning  the  languages;  especially 


AfEDIMVAL  ADVF.RTISIXG, 


Hie  nimble  French,  inaiettilc  Spanish,  courtljr  Italian,  masculine 
Dutch,  happily  compounding  Greek,  mysticall  Hebrew,  and  physical! 
AraMclcc  ;  ortliat  is  otherwise  tnin5ported  with  the  admirable  knowledge 
of  forraine  policies  complimenlal!  behaviour,  natwrall  dispositions,  or 
whatsoever  cl^e  belongs  to  any  people  or  country  under  heaven  ;  he 
shall,  to  his  abundant  salisfaclion,  be  made  hnppy  in  his  expectation 
and  successe  if  be  please  to  repair  lo  the  signe  of  the  Globe. 

Again,  Ben  Jonson's  "Every  Man  out  of  his  Humour" 
introduces  Shift.  '*a  threadbare  shark,"  whose  "profession 
IS  skeldring  and  odUng,  his  bank  Paul's."  Speaking  of  Shift 
in  the  opening  scene  of  the  third  act,  which  the  dramatist  has 
laid  in  *Mhe  middle  aisle  of  Paules,"  Cordatus  says  that 
Shift  is  at  that  moment  in  Paules  '*for  the  advance- 
ment of  a  siqtits  or  two,  wherein  he  hath  so  varied  himselfe, 
that  if  any  one  of  them  take,  he  may  hull  up  and  doune 
in  the  humorous  world  a  little  longer."  Shift's  productions 
deserved  to  succeed,  as  they  were  masterpieces  of  their  kind, 
and  might  even  now,  though  the  world  is  so  much  older, 
and  professes  to  be  so  much  wiser,  be  studied  with  advan- 
tage by  gentlemen  who  cultivate  the  literature  of  advertise- 
ments in  the  interest  of  certain  firms.  Here  are  some  of 
his  compositions,  which  would  certainly  shine  among  the 
examples  of  the  present  day  : — 

If  there  be  any  lady  or  gentlewoman  of  good  carriage  that  is  desirous 
to  entertain  loher  private  uses  a  young,  straight,  and  upriEbt  gentleman, 
of  the  age  of  five  or  six  and  twenty  at  the  most  ;  who  can  serve  in  die 
nature  of  a  gentleman  usher,  and  hath  little  legs  of  pur]M>se,*  and  a 
black  satin  suit  of  his  own  lo  go  before  her  in  ;  which  suit,  for  the  more 
sweetening,  now  lies  in  lavender ;+  and  can  liide  his  face  with  her  fan 
if  need  require,  or  sit  in  the  cold  at  the  stair  foot  for  her,  as  well  as 
another  gentleman  ;  let  her  subscribe  her  name  and  place,  and  diligent 
respect  shall  be  given. 


Small  calveles3  legs  are  mentioned  oa  characteristic  of  a  gentle- 
in  many  of  our  old  plays,  and  will  be  observed  in  most  full-length 
portraits  of  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  century, 
•t  To  '*  lie  in  lavender  *'  was  a  cant  term  for  being  in  pawn. 


■ 


i 


$6  TTISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 

The  following  is  even  an  improvement : — 

11*0119  city,  or  thcsuburlKof  the  same,  do  afford  any  young  jjenttetnaii 
of  the  fir&t,  secuiid,  or  third  bead,  more  or  less,  who!>c  friends  are  but 
lately  deceased,  and  whose  lands  ^re  but  new  come  into  his  hands,  that, 
(o  be  as  exactly  qualified  as  the  best  of  our  ordinary  gallants  are,  is  affec- 
ted to  entertain  the  most  gcnllemanhkc  use  of  tobacco  ;  as  first  to  give 
it  (he  most  exquisite  perfume  ;  then  to  know  all  the  delicate,  sweet  forms 
for  the  as'^umption  uf  it ;  as  also  the  rare  corollary  and  practice  of  the 
Cuban  clMlilion^  euripus  and  whiff/  which  we  shall  receive  or  take  in 
here  at  London,  and  evaporate  at  Uxbridge,  or  farther,  if  it  please  him. 
If  there  be  any  such  generous  spirit,  tliat  is  truly  cnamour'd  of  these 
good  faculties  ;  may  it  please  him  but  by  a  note  of  his  hand  to  specify 
the  place  or  ordinary  where  he  uses  to  eat  and  lie  ;  and  most  sweet 
attendance  with  tobacco  and  pipes  of  the  best  sort,  shall  be  mims- 
tcred.     ^et  quaso^  randide  Ifctifr. 

It  is  noticeable  that  most  of  these  advertisements  com- 
mence with  the  English  equivalent  for  the  Latin  si  quis,  and 
furthermore  that  Ben  Jouson  concludes  with  the  same  for- 
mula as  Caxton,  sUt  quatiOy  imploring  the  ''candid  reader" 
not  to  tear  off  the  bill  The  word  siquis  is  of  frequent  occur- 
rence in  the  old  writers.  Green,  for  instance,  in  his  "  Tu 
Quoquc/'  says  of  certain  women  that  "they  stand  like  the 
devil's  siquis  at  a  lavem  or  alehouse  door."  At  present  the 
term  has  more  particular  reference  to  ecclesiastical  matters 
A  candidate  for  holy  orders  who  has  not  been  educated  at 
the  University,  or  has  been  absent  some  time  from  thence,  is 
still  obliged  to  have  his  intention  proclaimed,  by  having  a 
notice  to  that  effect  hung  up  in  the  church  of  the  place  where 
he  has  recently  resided.  Ifj  after  a  certain  time,  no  objec- 
tion is  made,  a  certificate  of  his  siquis^  signed  by  the  church- 
wardens, is  given  to  him  to  be  presented  to  the  bishop 
when  he  seeks  ordination. 

At  the  lime  when  the  siquis  was  the  most  common  form 


*  Tricks  performed  with  tobacco  smoke  were  fosliionnblc  amon^t 
the  gallants  of  the  period,  and  are  recommended  in  Decker's  "Gull's 
Horn-Hook,"  and  commended  in  many  old  plan's.  Making  rings  of 
smoke  was  a  fivourile  amusement  in  those  days. 


MEDIMVAL  ADVERTISING.  57 

of  advertisement,   other  methods  were  used  in  order  to 
give  publicity  to  certain  events.    There  were  the  proclama- 
tions of  the  will  of  the  King,  and  of  the  Lord  Mayor,  whose 
edicts  were  proclaimed  by  the  common  trumpeter.     There 
were  also  two  richly  carved  and  gilt  posts  at  the  door  of 
the  ShcrifTs  office,*  on  which  (some  annotators  of  old  plays 
say)  it  was  customary  to  stick  enactments  of  the  Town 
Council     The  common  crier  further  made  known  matters 
of  minor   and   commercial   importance,  and   every  shop- 
keeper  still   kept   an   apprentice   at   his    door  to  attract 
the  attention  of  the  passers-by  with  a  continuous  "  What 
do  you  lack,  master?"  or  "  mistress,"  followed  by  a  voluble 
enumeration  of  the  wares  vended  by  his    master.     The 
bookseller,  as  in  ancient  Rome,  still  advertised   his  new 
works  by  placards  posted  against  his  shop,  or  fixed  in  cleft 
sticks.     This  we  gather  from  an  epigram  of  Ben  Jonson  to 
his  bookseller,  in  which  he  enjoins  him  rather  to  sell  his 
works  to  Bucklersbury,  to  be  used  for  wrappers  and  bags, 
than  to  force  their  sale  by  the  usual  means  : — 

Nor  have  my  little  leaf  on  post  or  walls, 
Or  in  cleft  sticks  advanced  to  make  calls 
For  termers  or  some  clerk-like  serving-man. 

Announcements  of  shows  were  given  in  the  manner  still 
followed  by  the  equestrian  circus  troops  in  provincial  towns, 
viz.,  by  means  of  bills  and  processions.  Thus  notice  of  bear- 
baitings  was  given  by  tlie  bears  being  led  about  the  town, 
preceded  by  a  flag  and  some  noisy  instruments.  In  the 
Duke  of  Newcastle's  play  of  "The  Humorous  Lovers" 
(1677),  the  sham  bearward  says,  "I'll  set  up  my  bills,  that  the 
gamesters  of  London,  Horseleydown,  Southwark,  and  New- 
market, may  come  in  and  bait  him  before  the  ladies.  But 
first,  boy,  go,  fetch  me  a  bagpipe ;  we  will  walk  the  streets 
in  triumph,  and  give  the  people  notice  of  our  sport"  Such 
a  procession  was,  of  course,  a  noisy  one,  and  for  that  reason 


•  Sec  prints  in  "  Archseologia,"  xix.  p.  383. 


58 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


It  tO^ 


It  was  one  of  the  plagues  ihe  mischievous  page  sent 
torment  Morose,  "  the  gentleman  that  loves  no  noise,"  in 
Ben  Jonson's  **  Silent  Woman."  *' I  entreated  a  bearward 
one  day,"  says  the  page,  "  to  come  down  with  the  dogs  of 
some  four  parishes  that  way,  and  I  thank  him  he  did,  and 
cried  his  game  nnder  Master  Morose's  window. '^  And  m 
Howard's  "  English  Monsieur"  (1674),  William,  a  country 
youth,  says,  "  I  saw  two  rough-haired  things  led  by  the 
nose  with  two  strings,  and  a  bull  like  ours  in  the  country, 
with  a  brave  garland  about  his  head,  and  an  horse,  and  the 
least  gentleman  upon  him  that  ever  I  saw  in  my  life,  and 
brave  bagpipes  playing  before  'um  ;"  which  is  explained  by 
Comely  as  occasioned  by  its  being  "  bcarbaiting  day,  and 
he  has  met  with  the  bull,  and  the  bears,  and  the  jack-an- 
apes  on  horseback."  Trials  of  skilijn^  the  noble  art  of 
self-defence  were  announced  in  a  simils^  manner,  by  the 
combatants  promenading  the  streets  divested  of  their  upper 
garments,  with  their  sleeves  tucked  up,  sword  or  cudgel  in 
hand,  and  preceded  by  a  drum.  Finally,  for  the  use  of  the 
community  at  large,  there  was  the  bellman  or  town  crier,  a 
character  which  occupies  a  prominent  place  in  all  the  old 
sets  of  **  Cries  of  London."  i\\  one  of  the  earliest  collec- 
tions of  that  kind,*  engraved  early  in  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury, we  see  him  represented  with  a  bunch  of  keys  in  his 


hand,  which  he  no  doubt  proclaims  as 
neath  is  the  following  "  notice  :  " — 


found,"    Under- 


O  yes.     Any  man  or  woman  that 
Can  tcU  any  tidings  of  a  liiile 
Mayden-childe  of  the  age  of  34 
Vcares.     Bring  word  to  the  cryar 
And  you  shall  be  pleased  for 

your  labour 
And  God's  blessing. 


Vidt  Decker's  "  Belman  of  London  : 
notorious  Viilanies  that  are 
dun,  1 60S. 


Bringin)^  to  Light  the  moit 
pimctised  in  the  Kingdome."    Lon- 


MEDIMVAt  ADVERTISING.  59 

This  was  an  old  joke,  which,  more  or  less  varied,  occurs 
always  under  the  print  of  the  town  crier.  The  prototype 
of  this  venerable  witticism  may  be  found  in  the  tragedy  of 
"  Soliman  and  Perseda"  (1599),  where  one  of  the  characters 
says  that  he 

had  but  sixpence 

For  crying  a  little  vench  of  thirty  yeeres  old  and  upwardes, 
That  had  lost  herself  betwixt  a  taveme  and  a  b y  house. 

Notwithstanding  the  immense  development  of  advertising 
since  the  spread  of  newspapers,  the  services  of  the  bellman 
are  still  used  in  most  of  the  country  towns  of  the  United 
Kingdom,  and  even  in  London  there  are  still  bellmen  and 
parish  criers,  though  their  offices  would  appear  to  be  sine- 
cures. The  provincial  crier's  duties  are  of  the  most  various 
description,  and  relate  to  objects  lost  or  found,  sales  by 
public  auction  or  private  contract,  weddings,  christenings, 
and  funerals.  Not  much  more  than  a  century  ago  the 
burgh  of  Lanark  was  so  poor  that  there  was  in  it  only 
one  butcher,  and  even  he  dared  never  venture  on  killing 
a  sheep  till  every  part  of  the  animal  was  ordered  before- 
hand. When  he  felt  disposed  to  engage  in  such  an  enter- 
prise, he  usually  prevailed  upon  the  minister,  the  provost, 
and  the  members  of  the  town  council  to  take  a  joint  each  ; 
but  when  shares  were  not  subscribed  for  readily,  the  sheep 
received  a  respite.  On  such  occasion  the  services  of  the 
bellman,  or  "  skelligman,"  as  he  was  there  named,  were 
called  into  request,  and  that  official  used  to  perambulate 
the  streets  of  Lanark  acquainting  the  lieges  with  the 
butcher's  intentions  in  the  following  rhyme  : — 

Bell— ell— ell ! 
There 's  a  fat  sheep  to  kill ! 
A  leg  for  the  provost, 

Another  for  the  priest. 
The  bailies  and  the  deacons 
They  'U  talc*  the  neist ; 
And  if  the  fourth  leg  we  canna  sell, 
The  sheep  it  maun  leeve,  and  gae  back  to  the  hill  I 


6o 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


I 


Sir  Walter  Scott,  in  one  of  his  notes,  gives  a  quaint 

specimen  of  vocal  advertising.  In  the  old  days  of  Scotland, 
when  persons  of  property  (unless  they  happened  to  be 
nonjurors)  were  as  regular  as  their  inferiors  in  attendance 
on  parochial  worship,  there  was  a  kind  of  eiiquette  in 
waiting  till  the  patron,  or  acknowledged  great  man  of  the 
parish,  should  make  his  appearance.  This  ceremonial  was 
so  sacred  in  the  eyes  of  a  parish  beadle  in  the  Isle  of  Bute, 
that  the  kirk  bell  being  out  of  order,  he  is  said  to  have 
mounted  the  steeple  every  Sunday  to  imitate  with  his  voice 
the  successive  summonses  which  its  mouth  of  metal  used  to 
send  forth.  The  fust  part  of  this  imitative  harmony  was  simply 
the  repetition  of  the  words,  *'  Bell,  bell,  bell,  bell !"  two  or 
three  times,  in  a  manner  as  niucli  resembling  the  sound  as 
throat  of  flesh  could  imitate  throat  of  iron.  **  Belliimj 
Bellbm  1"  was  sounded  forth  in  a  more  urgent  manner; 
but  he  never  sent. forth  the  third  and  conclusive  peal,  the 
varied  tone  of  which  is  called  in  Scotland  the  "  ringing-in," 
until  the  two  principal  heritors  of  the  parish  approached, 
when  the  chime  ran  thus — 

Bcllum  Bellillum, 
Bernera  and  Knocl^dow  's  coming! 

Hciluin  i{<:]lc:Ilum, 
Bernera  and  Knockdow  's  coming  I 

A  Story  is  also  told  of  an  old  Welsh  beadle,  who,  having 
no  bell  to  his  church,  or  the  bell  being  out  of  order,  used 
to  mount  the  tower  before  the  service  on  Sundays,  and 
advertise  the  fact  that  they  were  just  about  to  begin,  in 
imitation  of  the  chimes,  and  in  compliment  to  the  most 
conspicuous  patronymics  in  the  congregation  list,  thus — 


J 


Shon  Morgan,  Shon  Shones, 
Shon  Morgan,  Shon  Shones, 
Shon  Shcukin,  Shon  Morgan,  Shon  Shenkin, 
Shon  Shones ) 


J 


Continued  i  discretion.     And  with  this  most  singular  fornj, 
of  vocal  advertising  we  will  conclude  tlie  chapter. 


CHAPTER  V. 

NEWSPAPBX  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED — ITS     ' 
BARUEST  USE — HOUGHTON'S  LESSONS, 

BY  this  time,  and  in  various  ways,  the  first  transitory 
glimpses  of  a  system  at  present  all-powerful  and 
universal  began  to  show  themselves — vague  and  uncertain, 
and  often  unsatisfactory,  it  must  be  admitted,  but  still  the 
fiist  evidences  of  the  growth  of  an  unparalleled  institution ; 
in  fact,  the  base  upon  which  the  institution  eventually 
reared  itself.  With  improvements  in  printing,  and  the 
invention  of  movable  type,  the  supply  of  pamphlets  on 
current  topics — the  first  rude  forerunners  of  the  newspaper 
as  we  understand  it — began  to  be  enlarged,  and  this  oppor- 
tunity was  not  lost  on  the  bold  spirits  who  even  in  those 
days  could  understand  the  advantages  bound  to  accrue 
from  a  system  of  intercommunication  at  once  advantageoui: 
to  buyer  and  seller,  and  calling  for  special  attention  from 
both.  There  is  a  wonderful  amount  of  attraction  about 
these  discoloured  and  rnoth-eaten  papers,  with  their  rude 
types  and  quaint  spelling,  which  breathe,  as  much  as  do 
the  words  themselves,  the  spirit  of  a  bygone  age,  and 
those  who  are  so  fond  of  praising  past  times  might  receive 
a  valuable  lesson  from  the  perusal  of  these  occasional 
publications,  which  are  full  of  the  spirit  of  an  age  when 
comfort,  as  we  understand  the  word,  was  unknown  to  even 
the  wealthy;  when  travelling  was  a  luxury —a  woeful  luxury, 
it  must  be  admitted — known  only  to  those  possessed  of 
ample  means,  or  others  called  forth  on  special  or  desperate 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTJSiSG. 


missions;  when  men  lived  long,  and,  as  ihcy  thought, 
eventful  lives,  within  a  circle  of  half-a-dozen  miles  ;  and 
when  the  natural  consequences  of  this  isolation,  ignorance 
and  intolerance,  held  almost  absolute  sway  over  the  length 
and  breadth  of  the  lan<i.  And  in  these  old  papers,  as  we 
get  nearer  ami  nearer  to  modern  times,  can  be  traced  the 
gradual  benefit  which  accrued  from  man's  intercourse  wth 
man,  not  only  by  the  construction  and  improvement  o( 
roads,  and  the  introduction  of  and  competition  among  stage 
coaches,  but  by  means  of  the  subject  of  this  work, — and 
very  much  by  their  means  too, — advertisements. 

As  early  as  1524,  pamphlets  or  small  books  of  news  were 
printed  in  Vienna  and  other  parts  of  Germany,  but  their 
publication  was  very  irregular,  and  little  or  nothing  is 
known  of  them  beyond  the  fact  of  their  being.  It  is  not 
easy  to  determine  which  nation  first  found  its  way  towards 
newspaper  advertisements,  but  there  is  good  reason  to 
believe  that  France  is  entitled  to  the  honour,  so  far  as 
regular  and  consecutive  business  is  concerned.  The 
Journal  Ghthai  d'Affiches^  better  known  as  the  Petiies 
Affiches^  was  first  published  on  the  14th  of  October  i6ia^| 
It  obtained  from  Louis  XIII.  by  ktters-palent  sundr^" 
privileges  which  were  subsequently  confirmed  (1628  and 
1635).  Judging  by  the  title  of  this  publication,  it  would 
appear  to  have  been  an  advertising  medium,  but  this  must 
be  left  to  surmise,  there  being  no  opportunity,  so  far  as 
we  are  aware,  of  inspecting  the  earliest  numbers.  Two 
centuries  and  a  half  have  passed  away  since  the  first  ap* 
pearance  of  this  periodical,  and  the  Peiites  Affiches  has 
neither  changed  its  title,  nor,  it  may  be  fairly  presumed, 
the  nature  of  its  publicity.  It  is  now  the  journal  of  the 
domestic  wants  of  France;  and  sen^ants  seeking  situations, 
or  persons  wanting  servants,  advertise  in  it  in  preference 
to  all  others.  It  is  especially  the  medium  for  announcing 
any  public  or  private  sales  of  property,  real  or  personal ; 
and  the  publication  of  partnership  deeds,  articles  of  as- 


NEIVSPAPER  ADVERTISING  FORESFTADOWEP,      6.? 

sociation  of  public  companies,  and  other  legal  notices,  are 
required  to  be  inserted  in  \\\^  Journal  dcs  Petites  A ffiches^ 
uhich  is  published  in  a  small  octavo  form. 

The  oldest  newspaper  paragraph  approaching  to  an  ad- 
vertisement yet  met  with,  is  in  one  of  those  early  German 
newsbooks  preserved  in  the  British  Museum.  It  is  printed 
in  1 591,  without  name  of  place,  and  contains  all  the 
memorable  occurrences  of  the  years  1588  and  1589,  such 
as  the  defeat  of  the  Armada,  the  murder  of  King  Henry 
III.  of  France,  and  other  stale  matter  of  the  same  kind;  a 
curious  instance  of  the  tardiness  with  which  news,  whether 
good  or  ill,  travelled  in  those  times.  Among  the  many 
signs  and  tokens  which  were  then  supi)Oscd  to  give  warning 
of  divine  wrath  at  the  general  wickedness  of  mankind,  was 
an  unknown  plant  which  had  made  its  appearance  in  one 
of  the  suburbs  of  the  town  of  Soltwedel  It  grew  in  a 
garden  amongst  other  plants,  but  nobody  had  ever  seen  its 
like.  A  certain  Dr  Laster  thereupon  wrote  a  book  de- 
scribing the  plant,  and  giving  a  print  of  it  in  the  froiHis- 
piece.  "This  book,"  says  the  pamphlet,  "which  as  yet  is 
not  much  known,  shows  and  explains  all  what  this  plant 
contains.  Magistcr  Cunan  has  published  it,  and  Maithew 
Welack  has  printed  it,  in  Wittemberg.  Let  whoever  does 
not  yet  know  the  meaning  of  this  [portend]  buy  the  book 
at  oucei  and  read  it  with  all  possible  zeal :" — 


£m  wunderlichs  Gewechs  man  hat, 

Von  Soltwedel  dcr  Alien  stad. 
Per  Berber  die  Vorsiadt  getiand, 

Gefundcn  wclchs  ^x  nicmand  kend. 
la  cincm  Garten  gcwachsen  ist. 

Bey  oudcm  Krcutcm  ist  gcwia, 
Scin  Conlcrfey  und  rechi  gestalt, 

Wird  aufTm  Tittel  genigct  bald, 
Ein  Buch  IIoB^arts  La^ergcnand, 

Welches  jetzt  noch  schr  unbckftnd 
Darin  gewiescn  und  vemiieit, 

Wu  das  cewcchie  in  stch  hilt, 


64 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


Mag :  Cunaw  hats  peben  an  den  Tag 
Zu  W)lteml>erg  druckts  Malths  Welack, 

Wcr  dcs  bcdcutung  nocli  nicht  wcis 
KnufTdas  IJuch  Itsz  mil  allcm  flcis. 

Though  this  is  an  adverti^ieinent  to  all  intents  and  pi 
poses,  siill  it  is  of  the  kind  now  best  known  amongst  those 
most  interested  as  *'  puff  pars/'  and  is  similar  to  those  that 
the  early  booksellers  frequently  inserted  in  their  works. 
It  is  therefore  not  unlikely  that  the  book  ia  question  and 
the  newsletter  were  printed  at  the  same  shop.  Another, 
in  fact,  the  earliest  instance  of  newspaper  advertising,  is 
that  of  Nathaniel  Butler;  still  this  also  only  relates  to 
books.  The  first  genuine  miscellaneous  advertisements 
yet  discovered  occur  in  a  Dutch  black-letter  newspaper, 
which  was  published  in  the  reign  of  our  Jaraes  I.,  without 
name  or  title.  The  advertisement  in  question  is  inserted 
at  the  end  of  the  folio  half-sheet  which  contains  the  news, 
November  21,  1626,  and,  in  a  type  diiTcrent  from  the  rest 
of  the  paper,  gives  notice  that  there  will  be  held  a  sale  by 
auction  of  articles  taken  out  of  prizes,  viz.,  sugar,  ivory, 
pepper,  tobacco,  and  logwood.  At  that  time  there  ap^^| 
pearcd  two  newspapers  in  Amsterdam,  and  it  is  not  a  little^ 
curious  that  Broer  Jansz*  occasionally  advertised  the  books 
he  published  in  the  paper  of  his  rival,  winch  was  entitled 
"  Courant  from  Italy  and  Germany."  Gradually  the  adver- 
tirements  become  more  frequent,  the  following  being  some 
of  tliem  literally  translated.  The  first  is  from  the  CourattU 
uyi  Italim  en  dc  DuyhchUind  of  July  23,  itT^ji  ■ — 


With  the  last  ships  from  the  East   Indies  liave  been  brought  ai^l 
elephant,  a  tiger,  and  on  Indian  stng,  which  are  to  be  seen  at  the  Old^H 

of 


Gloss  house,  for  the  benefit  of  ibe  poor,  where  many  thousands  of 
people  vi&it  them. 


•  Brocr  Jansz  styles  himself  "Courantcer  in  tlie  Army  of  h 
Princely  Excellence,"  i>.,  Prince  Frederic  Henry,  the  Stadiholdcr, 
Subsequently,  in  1630,  Jnnsi  commenced  a  new  scries,  which  he 
entided  "Tidings  from  Various  Quarter*.** 


lBl«f«t  la  ft^UAb  iJtKUy  ^p^nMj  wlih  nvatJ  bo  lb*  UtU  Wu>.  U  wu  uivk 
B«r*l  HIM*:  ail  «bni  ta  IWIJ  itomwall  MMiu^arf  ••■iwdim  iMivnr.  th*  ft\n«*wut 
«mI  roitorfAd  to  aiMw  Uc  iK/ioio  rt  i>»(>  mblch  bad  nonUy  pmm4  tb  tin»l  Bs\\«t>^ 


NEWSPAPER  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED,      65 

The  heirs  of  the  late  Mr  Bemaidus  Paludanas,  Doctor,  of  the  <l'\if  of 
Enkhuyzen,  will  eell  his  WDrld-famed  museum  in  lota,  by  public  auction, 
or  by  private  contract,  on  the  ist  of  August,  1634* 

The  two  following  arc  taken  from  the  Tydutghcti^  the 
first  appearing  on  May  27,  1634  : — 

The  Burgomasters  and  Council  of  the  town  of  Utrecht  have  been 
pleased  to  found  in  this  old  and  famous  town,  an  illusirioua  school 
[unirenity],  nl  which  will  be  taught  and  explained  the  sacred  Theology 
and  Jurisprudence,  besides  Philosophy,  History,  and  similar  sciences. 
And  itvriil  commence  and  open  at  Wliitsuatide  of  this  present  year. 

A  few  days  after,  on  June  7tb,  the  inauguration  of  this 
school  is  advertised  as  about  to  take  place  on  the  ensuing 
Tuesday.  There  is  one  instance  of  an  advertisement  from 
a  foreign  country  being  inserted  in  this  paper;  it  runs  as 
follows,  and  is  dated  June  3,  1635  : — 

Licentiate  Grinii  British  preacher  snd  professor  at  the  University  of 
Wcsel,  has  published  an  extensive  treatise  against  all  popish  scribblers* 
entitled  •'  Papal  Sanctimony,"  that  is,  catholic  and  authentic  proof 
that  Pope  John  VIII.,  commonly  called  Pope  Jutte  [Joan],  was  a 
voman. 

In  England  the  first  bonft  fide  attempt  at  newspaper  work 
was  attempted  in  1622,  when  the  outbreak  of  the  great  Civil 
AVar  caused  an  unusual  demand  to  be  made  for  news,  and  as 
the  appetite  grew  by  what  it  fed  on,  this  unwonted  request  for 
infonnation  maybe  regarded  as  the  fount-spring  of  that  vast 
machine  which  "liners"  delight  to  call  "the  fourth  estate." 
It  was  this  demand  which  suggested  to  one  Nathaniel 
Butler,  a  bookseller  and  a  pamphleteer  of  twelve  years' 
standing,  the  idea  of  printing  a  weekly  newspaper  from  the 
Venetian  gazettes,  which  used  to  circulate  in  manuscript. 
AAer  one  or  two  preliminary  attempts,  he  acquired  suffi- 
cient confidence  in  his  publication  to  issue  the  following 
advertisement : — 

If  any  gentleman  or  other  accustomed  to  buy  the  weekly  relattoni 
of  newes  be  desirous  to  continue  the  same,  let  them  know  that  the  ^- 

Writer,  or  tiaoscribcr  rather,  of  this  newes,  hath  publiihcd  two  former  \/^ 
Dewea,  the  one  dated  the  and  and  the  other  the  13th  of  August,  all  of 
which  do  carry  a  Uke  title  with  the  arms  of  the  King  of  Bohemix  on  the 


NISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


best  tcA,  and  making  drink  thereof  very  many  noblemen,  physicians, 
merchants,  &c.,  have  ever  since  .lent  to  him  for  the  said  leaf,  and  daily 
resort  to  his  house  to  drink  the  drink  thereof.  He  sells  tea  from  l6t. 
to  50s.  a  pound. 

The  opposition  beverage,  coflfee — mention  is  made  of  the 
"cophee-house"  in  the  '*Tcha"  advertisement — had  been 
known  in  this  country  some  years  before,  a  Turkey  mer- 
chant of  London,  of  the  name  of  Edwards,  having  brought 
the  first  bag  of  coffee  to  London,  and  his  Greek  servant, 
Pasqua  Rosee,  was  the  first  to  open  a  coflTee-house  in 
London.  This  was  in  1652,  the  time  of  the  Protectorate, 
and  one  Jacobs,  a  Jew,  had  opened  a  similar  establishment 
in  Oxford  a  year  or  two  earlier.  Pasqua  Roscc's  coffee- 
house was  in  St  Michael's  Alley.  Cornhill.  One  of  his 
original  handbills  is  preserved  in  the  British  Museum,  and 
is  a  curious  record  of  a  remarkable  social  innovation.  It  is 
here  reprinted  : — 

THE  VERTUE  OF  THE  COFFEE  DRINK, 

First  made  and publkly  sold  in  En^and  by 

PASQUA  ROSEE, 

The  grain  or  berry  called  coffee,  groweth  upon  little  trees  only 
the  deserts  of  Arabia.  Ic  is  brought  from  thence  and  drunk  generally 
throughout  all  the  Grand  Scignour's  dominions.  It  is  a  simple,  inno- 
cent thing,  composed  into  a  drink,  by  being  dried  in  an  oven,  and 
ground  to  powder,  and  boiled  up  with  spring  water,  and  about  half  a 
pint  of  it  to  be  drunk  fasting  an  hnur  before,  and  not  enting  an  hour 
after,  and  to  be  taken  as  hot  as  can  possibly  be  endured;  the  which 
will  never  fetch  the  skin  of  the  mouthy  or  raise  any  blisters  by  reason 
of  that  heat 

The  Turk's  drink  at  meals  and  other  times  is  usually  water,  and  theic 
diet  consists  much  of  fniit ;  the  acidities  whereof  are  very  much  cor- 
rected by  this  drink. 

The  quality  of  this  drink  is  cold  and  dry  ;  and  though  it  be  11  drier; 
yet  it  neither  heats  nor  inflames  more  than  hot  posset.  It  so  incloseth 
the  orifice  of  the  stomach,  and  fortifies  the  heat  within,  that  ii  is  very 
good  to  help  digestion  ;  and  therefore  of  great  use  to  be  taken  about 
three  or  four  o'clock  afternoon,  as  well  as  in  the  morning.  It  much 
quickens  the  spirits,  and  makes  the  heart  lightsome  ;  it  is  good  against 
sore  eyes,  and  lite  belter  if  you  hold  your  head  over  it  and  take  in  the 


XL  IS 

inly  itfB 


fElVSPAPEK  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED.      69 


im  that  way.     It  supprcwetli  fumes  exceedingly,  and  therefore  is 
against  ihc  headache,  and  will  very  much  stop  any  dcfluxion  of 
>ujns  that  distil  from  the  head  upon  the  stomach,  and  so  prcrent  and 
Ip  consumptions  and  the  cough  of  the  lung5. 

It  is  excellent  to  prevent  and  cure  the  dropsy,  gout,  and  scurvy.  It 
is  known  by  experience  to  be  better  than  any  other  drying  drink  for 
people  in  years,  or  children  that  have  any  running  humours  upon  them, 
as  the  king's  evil,  &c.  It  is  a  most  excellent  remedy  against  the  spteeOy 
hypochoodriac  winds,  and  the  like.  It  jriU  prevent  drowsiness,  and 
make  qpe  fit  for  business,  if  one  have  occasion  to  walcfa,  and  therefore 
you  ore  not  to  drink  of  it  after  supper,  unless  you  intend  to  be  watchful, 
for  it  will  hinder  sleep  for  three  or  four  hours. 

It  is  observed  that  in  Turkey,  where  this  is  generally  drunk,  that  they 

are  not  troubled  with  the  stone,  gout,  dropsy,  or  scurvy,  and  that  their 

skins  are  exceeding  clear  and  while.     It  is  neither  laxative  nor  restrin- 

gent. 

AI<uit  ohJ  Soid  in  St  MUhaeTs  AUey^  in  CamhUl^  by  Pasqua  Rosee, 

at  the  sign  of  his  awn  ktad. 

In  addition  to  tea  and  coffee,  the  introduction  and  acccjv 
tance  of  which  had  certainly  a  most  marked  influence  on 
Uie  progress  of  civilisation,  may  be  mentioned  a  third,  which, 
though  extensively  used,  never  became  quite  so  great  a 
favourite  as  the  others.  Chocolate,  the  remaining  member 
of  the  triad,  was  introduced  into  England  much  about  the 
same  period.  It  had  been  known  in  Germany  as  early  as 
1624,  when  Johan  Frantz  Rauch  ^vrote  a  treatise  against 
that  beverage.  In  England,  however,  it  seems  to  have  been 
introduced  much  later,  for  in  1657  it  was  still  advertised  as 
a  new  drink.  In  the  Pubiick  Advertiser  of  Tuesday,  June 
16-22,  1657,  we  find  the  following: — 

IN  Bishop'gate  Street,  in  Queen's  Head  Alley,  at  a  Frenchman's 
house,  is  an  excellent  West  India  drink,  called  chocolate,  to  be 
sold,  where  you  may  have  it  ready  at  any  time,  and  also  unmade,  at 
rcfljooable  rates. 

Chocolate  never,  except  among  exquisites  and  women  of 
fashion,  made  anything  of  a  race  with  its  more  sturdy  oppo- 
nents, in  this  country  at  all  events,  for  while  tea  and  coffee 
have  become  naturalised  beverages,  chocolate  has  always 
retained  its  foreign  prejudices. 


I 


I 


TO 


inSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


In  the  KiugdonCs  InfelUgencery  a  weekly  paper  published 
in  1662,  are  inserted  several  curious  advertisements  giving 
the  prices  of  tea,  coffee,  chocolate,  &c.,  one  of  which  is  as 
follows : — 

AT  the  Coffeehouse  in  Exchange  Alley,  is  sold  by  retail  the  right 
-  £offii pird.'d^r^  from  4s.  to  6s.  8d.  per  pound,  as  in  goodness  ;  that 
pounded  in  a  mortar  at  2s.  6d.  per  pound,  and  that  termed  the  East 
India  berry  at  iSd.  per  pound.  Also  that  termed  the  right  Turkey 
berry,  well  garbled  at  3s.  per  pound,  the  ungarblcd  for  Icssc,  with  direc- 
tions gratu  how  to  make  and  U'>e  the  same.  Likewise  there  you  may 
haTC  (hocolatta^  the  ordinary  pound  boxes  at  2a.  6d.  per  pound  ;  the 
perfumed  from  4s.  to  los.  per  pound.  Also  sherbets,  made  in  Turkic, 
of  lemons,  roses,  and  violets  perfumed,  and  Tea  according  to  its  good- 
ness. For  all  which,  if  any  gentleman  shall  write  or  send,  they  shall 
be  sure  of  the  best,  as  they  shall  order,  and,  to  avoid  deceit,  warranted 
under  the  house-seal — viz.,  Morat  the  Great.  Further,  all  gentlemen 
that  are  customers  and  acquaintance,  are  (the  next  New  Year's  day), 
invited  at  the  sign  of  the  Great  Turk,  at  the  new  coffee  house,  in 
Exchange  Alley,  where  cofft'e  will  be  on  free  cost. 

Leaving  the  enticing  subject  of  these  new  beverages,  we 
find  that  in  May  1657  there  appeared  a  weekly  paper  which 
assumed  the  title  of  the  Public  Advet-ther,  the  first  number 
being  dated  19th  to  26th  May.  It  was  printed  for  New- 
combe,  in  Thames  Street,  and  consisted  almost  wholly  of 
advertisements,  including  the  arrivals  and  departures  of 
ships,  and  books  to  be  printed.  Soon  other  papers  also 
commenced  to  insert  more  and  more  advertisements,  some- 
times stuck  in  the  middle  of  political  items,  and  announce- 
ments of  marine  disasters,  murders,  marriages,  births,  and 
deaths.  Most  of  the  notices  at  this  period  related  to  run- 
away apprentices  and  black  boys,  fairs  and  cockfights,  bur- 
glaries and  highway  robberies,  stolen  horses,  lost  dogs, 
swords,  and  scent-bottles,  and  the  departure  of  coaches 
on  long  journeys  into  the  provinces,  and  sometimes 
even  as  far  as  Edinburgh.  These  announcements  are 
not  devoid  of  interest  and  curiosity  for  us  who  live  in 
the  days  of  railways  and  fast  steamers  \  and  so  we  quote 


I 


NEWSPAPER  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED,      71 


\t  following  from  the  Mercurius  Foliiiats  of  April  1, 
165S  :— 

"pROM  the  26th  day  of  April  1658,  there  will  continue  to  go  Stage 
*■  Coaches  from  the  Gtorge  Inn,  without  Aldersgate,  Londoity  unto 
the  several  Cities  and  To\ms,  for  the  Rates  and  at  the  timei  hereafter 
mentioned  and  declared. 

Every  Monday^  Wednesday^  atid  Friday . 
To  Saliitbury  in  two  days  for  xxs.    To  Blandfard  and  DorcktsUr  in 
two  days  and  half  for  xxxs.     To  Burfcrt  in  three  days  for  xxxs.     To 
ExmasUff  Nunnington^  and  Exeter  in  four  days  for  xls. 

To  Stamf.^d  in  two  days  for  xxs.  To  Newark  in  two  days  and  a 
half  for  xxvs.  To  Bawtfy  in  three  days  for  xxxs.  To  Dotuaster  and 
Ferrihrid»e  for  xxxvs.     To  York  in  four  days  for  xls. 

Moitdays  and  Wednesdays  to  Oekinion  and  Plimouth  for  Is. 

^^^   Every  Monday  to  Hdperhy  and  Nortkailerton  for  xlvs.     To  Darneion 

^^Hul  Ferrykil  for  Is.     To  Durham  for  Ivs.     To  Newcastle  for  iii^. 

^^H  Once  every  fortnight  to  Edinburgh  for  \\£  a  peccc — Mondays, 

^^H  Every  Friday^  to  Wakefield  in  four  days,  xls. 

^^m  All  persons  who  desire  to  travel  unto  the  Cities,  Towns,  and  Roads 
berrin  hereafter  mentioned  and  expressed,  namely — to  Cmjentryt  Liieh' 
fi^J,  Stone^  Namptwieh^  Chester^  Warrington^  Wtggan,  Charley,  Preston^ 
Cajtang,  Lancaster  and  Kendal ;  and  also  to  Stamford,  Grantham, 
Newark,  Ttixjord,  Bawtrey,  Doncaster,  Ferriebridge,  York,  Helperby, 
AorthalUrton,  Dametim,  Ferryhill,  Durham^  and  Newcastle,  Wakefieidf 
Leedt,  and  Halifax;  and  also  to  Salisbury,  Btandford,  Dorchester^ 
Burpmt,  Exmtuter^  Hunningtan,  and  Exeter,  Ockinfon^  Plimouth^ 
and  Connval ;  let  them  repair  to  the  George  Inn,  at  Holbcrn  Bridge, 
Z,tn^tt,  and  llicnce  they  shall  be  in  good  Coaches  with  goo<l  Horses, 
vpon  every  Altmday,  Wedmsday,  and  Fridays^  at  lud  for  reasonable 
Rates. 

Among  the  advertisements  which  prevailed  most  exten- 
sively in  those  early  times,  may,  as  has  been  remarked,  be 
ranked  those  of  runaway  servants^  apprentices,  and  black 
boys,     England  at  that  time  swarmed  with  negro  or  mulatto 
boys,  which  the  wealthy  used  as  pages,  in  imitation  of  the 
lian  nobility.     They  were  either  imported  from  the  West 
idics,  or  brought  from  the  Peninsula.     The  first  advertise- 
ment of  a  runaway  black  page  we  meet  with  is  dated  August 
I,  1659,  but  in  this  instance  the  article  is  advertised  as 


I 


I 


7« 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


I 


"lost/*  like  a  dog,  which  is  after  all  but  natural,  the  boy 
being  a  chattel : — 

A  Negro-boy,  aboat  nine  years  of  age,  in  a  ^ray  Sear^e  suit,  hU 
hair  cut  clotc  to  his  head,  was  lost  on  Tuesday  last.  Au^st  9, 
at  night,  in  St  Nicholas  Lane,  London.     If  any  one  can  give  notice  of 
him  to  Mr  Tho.  Barker,  at  the  Sngor  Loaf,  in  that  Lane,  they  shall  .J 
be  well  reworded  for  their  pains.  H 

It  is  amusing  to  see,  from  this  advertisement,  that  the 
wool  of  the  negro  found  no  grace  in  the  eye  of  his  Puritan 
master,  who  cropped  the  boy's  head  as  close  as  his  own. 
Black  boys  continued  in  fashion  for  more  than  a  century 
after,  and  were  frequently  offered  for  sale,  by  means  of  ad- 
vertisements, in  the  same  manner  as  slaves  used  to  be,  with- 
in recent  years,  in  the  Southern  States  of  America.  Even 
as  late  as  1769  sales  of  human  flesh  went  on  in  this  country. 
The  GaseiUrr,  April  18,  of  that  year,  classes  together  "for 
sale  at  the  Bull  and  Gate,  Holbom :  a  chestnut  gelding, 
a  trim-whiskey,  and  a  well-made,  good-tempered  black 
boy;"  whilst  a  Liverpool  paper  of  ten  years  later,  October 
15,  1779,  announces  as  to  be  sold  by  auction,  "at  George 
Dunbar's  offices,  on  Thursday  next,  21st  inst,  at  one  o'clock, 
a  black  boy  about  fourteen  years  old^  and  a  large  mountain 
tiger-cat"  This  will  be  news  to  many  blind  worshippers  of 
the  ideal  creature  known  as  "  a  man  and  a  brother." 

Another  curiosity  of  the  advertisement  literature  of  the 
seventeenth  centuty  is  the  number  of  servants  and  appren- 
tices absconding  with  their  masters'  property.  Nearly  all 
those  dishonest  servants  must  have  had  appearances  such  as 
in  these  days  might  lead  to  conviction  first  and  trial  after- 
wards. First  of  all,  there  is  scarcely  one  of  them  but  is 
"pock-marked,"  "pock-pitted,"  "  pock-fretted,"  " pock- 
holed,"  "pit-marked  "  or  *'  full  of  pock -holes,*'  a  fact  which 
furnishes  a  significant  inde.K  of  the  ravages  this  terrible 
sickness  must  have  made  amongst  our  ancestors,  and  offers 
a  conclusive  argument — though  argument  is  unfortunately 
inadmissible  among  them — to  those  blatant  and  illogical 


NEWSPAPER  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED.      73 


people,  the  opponents  of  vaccination.  Besides  the  myriads 
who  annually  died  of  small-pox,  it  would,  perhaps,  not  be 
an  exaggeration  to  assume  that  one-fourth  of  mankind  at 
that  time  was  pock-marked,  and  not  pock-marked  as  we 
understand  the  term.  Whole  features  were  destroyed,  and 
a  great  percentage  of  blindness  was  attributable  to  this 
cause.  Indeed,  so  accustomed  were  the  people  of  those 
times  to  pock-maiked  faces,  that  these  familiar  inequalities 
of  tlie  facial  surface  do  not  appear  to  have  been  considered 
an  absolute  drawback  even  upon  the  charms  of  a  beauty  or 
a  beau.  Louis  XIV.  in  his  younger  days  was  considered 
one  of  the  handsomest  men  of  France,  notwithstanding 
that  he  was  pock-marked,  and  La  Vallifere  and  some  other 
^mous  beauties  of  that  period  arc  known  to  have  laboured 
under  the  same  disadvantage.  This  is  a  hard  fact  which 
should  destroy  many  of  the  ideas  raised  by  fiction.  The 
following  is  a  fair  specimen  of  the  descriptions  of  the 
dangerous  classes  given  in  the  early  part  of  the  latter  half  of 
the  seventeenth  century,  and  is  taken  from  the  Mercuritts 
Politicus  of  May  1658  : —  | 

A  Bbck-haired  Maid,  of  a  middle  stature,  thick  set,  with  big  breasts, 
•**  having  her  face  full  marked  with  the  small-pox,  calling  herself 
by  the  name  of  Nan  or  ^igna  Hobion^  did,  upon  Monday,  ihc  2%  of  May, 
■bout  six  o'clock  in  the  morning,  steal  away  from  her  Ladies  boose  in  the 
Pal>'Mftl],  a  mingle- coloured  wrought  Tabby  gown  of  Deer  colour  and 
vhile ;  a  black  striped  Sattin  Gown  with  four  broad  bone-black  ailk 
\-»et^^  and  a  plain  black  watered  French  Tabby  Gown  ;  Also  one 
Scarlet-coloured  and  one  other  Pink-colonrcd  Sarcenet  Pelicoat,  and  a 
white  watered  Tabby  Wastcoat,  plain  ;  Several  Sarcenet,  Mode,  and  thin 
bUck  Hoods  and  Scarfs,  several  line  Holland  Shirts,  a  laced  pair  of  Cuffs 
■ad  Dressing,  one  pair  of  Pink-coloured  Worsted  Stockings,  a  Silver 
Spooiif  a  Leather  bag,  &c.  She  went  away  in  greyish  Cloth  Wastcoat] 
turned,  and  a  Pink-coloured  Paragon  upper  Peticoat,  with  a  green 
Tammy  under  one.  If  any  shall  give  notice  of  this  person  or  things 
U  one  Hifpkms,  a  Sh comaker's,  next  door  to  the  Vine  Tavern,  near  tjic 
Pal-mall  end,  near  Charing  Cross,  or  at  Mr  Ostlet^s^  at  the  Bull  Fiead 
ta  Comhill,  near  the  Old  Exchange,  they  shall  be  rewarded  for  their 
paius. 
In  the  same  style  was  almost  every  other  description;  and 


74  fflSTOR  y  Of  AD  VER  T/S/JVG. 

though  embarrassed  by  the  quantity  as  well  as  quality 
have  to  choose  from,  we  cannot  pass  over  this  bit  of  woi 
painting,  which  is  rich  in  description.     It  is  from  the 
airius  Politicus  of  July  1658  : — 

ONE  Eleanor  Parker  (by  birth  Haddock),  of  ft  Tawny  reddish  coiU' 
plexion,  a  pretty  long  nose,  tail  of  stature,  servant  to  Mr  Ferderi€ 
Hsmp^rt,  Kentisi)  Town,  upon  Saturday  last,  the  idtk  ofjune^  ran  away 
And  stole  two  Silver  Spoons;  a  sweet  Tent-work  Bag,  with  gold  and 
silver  Lace  about  it,  and  lined  with  Satin  ;  a  Bugle  work>Cushion,  very 
curiously  wrought  in  ail  manners  of  slips  and  flowers;  a  Shell  cup, 
with  a  Lyon's  face,  and  a  Ring  of  silver  in  its  mouth  ;  besides  many 
other  things  of  considerable  value,  which  she  took  out  of  her  Mistresses 
Cabinet,  which  she  broke  open  ;  as  also  some  Cloaths  and  Linen  of  all 
sorts,  to  the  value  of  Ten  pounds  and  upwards.  If  any  one  do  meet  with 
her  and  please  to  secure  her,  and  give  notice  to  the  said  Ferderic 
Howfert^  or  else  to  Mr  Malpass,  Leather  seller,  at  the  Green  Dragon, 
at  the  upper  end  of  Lawrence  Lane,  he  shall  be  thiinkfully  rewarde^^ 
for  his  pains.  |H 

But  besides  the  ravages  of  small-pox,  the  hue  and  cry 
raised  after  felons  exhibits  an  endless  catalogue  of  deformi- 
ties. Hardly  a  rogue  is  described  but  he  is  *'  ugly  as  sin." 
In  turning  over  these  musty  piles  of  small  quarto  news- 
papers which  were  read  by  the  men  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  a  most  ill-favoured  crowd  of  evil-doers  springs  up 
around  us.  The  rogues  cannot  avoid  detection,  if  they 
venture  out  among  good  citizens,  for  they  are  branded 
with  marks  by  which  all  men  may  know  them.  Take  th^^ 
following  specimens  of  '*  men  of  the  time."  The  first  ilH 
from  the  London  Gazette  of  January  24-28,  1677  : — 

ONE  John  Jones,  a  W<4chman,  servant  to  Mr  Gray,  of  Whitehall, 
went  away  the  27th  witli  /"joof  his  master's  in  silver.  He  isa^ed 
about  35  year^,  of  a  middle  stature,  something  thick,  a  down  black 
look,  purblind,  between  long  and  round  favoured,  aomclfaing  pale  of 
complexion,  lank,  dark,  red  hair  ;  a  hair-coloured  large  suit  on,  som^ 
thing  light ;  a  bowe  nose  a  little  sharp  and  reddish,  almost  beede 
brow'd  and  something  deaf,  given  to  slabber  in  his  speech.  Whoever 
secures  the  wd  servant  and  brings  bim  to  bis  master,  shall  hare  £\ 
reward. 

This  portrait  was  evidently  drawn  by  an  admirer  j  am 


iMAb 


NEWSPAPER  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED. 


73 


it  is  with  evident  pleasure  that  the  artist,  after  describing  the 
"lank,  dark,  red  hair,"  and  the  suit  like  it,  returns  to  the 
charge,  and  gives  the  finishing  touches  to  the  comely  features. 
Here  is  another  pair  of  beauties,  whose  descriptions  appear 
in  the  Currant  Intelligtnc€y  March  6-9,  16S2  : — 

CAMUEL  SMITH,  Scrivener  in  Grace  Church  Street,  London, 
•-^  about  36  years  old,  crook-backed,  of  short  stature,  red  hair,  haih 
a  black  periwig  and  someUraes  a  liyht  one,  pale  complexion,  Pock- 
boltd  full  face,  a  mountier  cap  with  a  scarlet  Ribbon,  and  one  of  the  same 
colour  on  his  cravat  and  sword,  a  light  coloured  campaign  coat  faced 
irith  blue  shag,  in  company  with  hia  brother  John  Smith,  who  has  a 
dii  in  his  nose,  a  tall  lusty  man,  red  hair,  a  sad  grey  campaign  coat,  a 
lead  colour  suit  lined  with  red :  they  were  mounted,  one  on  a  flea* 
UttcB  grey,  the  other  on  a  light  bay  horse. 

For  powers  of  description  this  next  is  worthy  of  study. 
It  is  contemporary  with  the  other:— 

WILLIAM  WALTON,  a  tall  young  man  about  sixteen  years  of 
age,  down-look'd,  much  disfigured  with  the  Small-pox,  strait 
browti  hair,  black  rotten  teeth,  having  an  impediment  in  his  speech,  in 
asftd  coloured  cloth  sutc,  the  cont  faced  with  shag,  a  white  bat  with  a 
black  ribbon  on  it,  went  away  from  his  master,  &c.  &c. 

And  SO  on,  as  per  example  \  the  runaways  and  missing 
folk — for  all  thai  ore  advertised  are  not  offenders  against 
the  law — seem  to  have  exhausted  the  whole  catalogue  of 
hunian  and  inhuman  ugliness-  By  turns  the  attention  of 
the  public  is  directed  to  a  brown  fellow  with  a  long  nose, 
or  with  full  staring  grey  eyes,  countenance  very  ill-favoured, 
having  lost  his  right  eye,  voice  loud  and  shrill,  teeth  black 
and  rotten,  with  a  wide  mouth  and  a  hang-dog  look,  smutty 
complexion ,  a  dimple  in  the  top  of  his  nose,  or  a  flat  wry  nose 
with  a  star  in  it,  voice  low  and  disturbed,  long  visage, 
down  look,  and  almost  every  other  objectionable  peculiarity 
imaginable.  What  a  milk-and-water  being  our  modem 
rough  is,  after  all  I 

Dr  Johnson,  in  a  bantering  paper  on  the  art  of  advertising, 
published  in  the  Idtcr^  No.  40,  observes :  "  The  man  who 
6rst  took  advantage  of  the  general  curiosity  that  was  ex- 


76  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 

cited  by  a  siege  or  battle  to  betray  the  readers  of  news  into 
the  knowledge  of  the  shop  where  the  best  puffs  and  powd< 
were  to  be  sold,  was  undoubtedly  a  man  of  great  sagacti 
and  profound  skill  in  the  nature  of  man.  But  when  he  hj 
once  shown  the  way,  it  was  easy  to  follow  him."  Yet 
look  a  considerable  time  before  the  mass  of  traders  cci 
be  brought  to  understand  the  real  use  of  advertising,  even' 
as  the  great  Doctor  understood  it.  Even  he  could  hardly  i 
have  comprehended  advertising  as  it  is  now.  The  first  masH 
who  endeavoured  to  systematically  convince  the  world  o^' 
the  vast  uses  which  might  be  made  of  this  medium  was  Sir 
Roger  L'Estrangc.  That  intcUigcnt  speculator,  in  1663, 
obtained  an  appointment  to  the  new  office  of  "Surveyor  of 
the  Imprimery  and  Printing  Presses,"  by  which  was  granted  to 
him  the  sole  privilege  of  writing,  printing,  and  publishing 
all  narratives,  advertisements,  mercuries,  &c  &c.,  besides 
all  briefs  for  collections,  playbills,  quack-salvers'  bills, 
tickets,  &c.  &c  On  the  ist  of  August  1663  appeared  a 
paper  published  by  him,  under  the  name  of  the  InUlUgencer^ 
and  on  the  24th  of  the  same  month  the  public  were  warned 
against  the  "  petty  cozenage  **  of  some  of  the  booksellers, 
who  had  persuaded  their  customers  that  they  could  not 
sell  the  paper  under  twopence  a  sheet,  though  it  was  sold  to 
them  at  about  a  fourth  part  of  that  price.  The  first  number 
of  the  Naves  (which  was  also  promoted  by  Sir  Roger 
L'Estrange)  appeared  September  3,  1663,  and,  as  we  are 
told  byNichoUs  in  his  "Literary  Anecdotes,"  "contained  more 
advertisements  of  importance  than  any  previous  paper." 
Still,  the  benefit  of  the  publicity  which  might  be  derived 
from  advertising  was  so  little  understood  by  the  trading 
community  of  the  period,  that  after  the  Plague  and  the 
Great  Fire  this  really  valuable  means  of  acquainting  the 
public  with  new  places  of  abode,  the  resumption  of  business, 
and  the  thousand  and  one  changes  incidental  on  sue; 
calamities,  were  almost  entirely  neglected.  Though  nearl; 
the  entire  city  had  been  burnt  out,  and  the  citizens  mu 


1 


XEIVSPAPER  ADVERTISIKG  FORESHADOWED.      77 

necessarily  have  entered  new  premises  or  erected  extempore 
shops,  yet  hardly  any  announcements  appear  in  the  papers  to 
acquaint  the  public  of  the  new  addresses.  The  London  Gazette, 
October  ii-iSj  1666,  offered  its  services,  but  hardly  to  any 
effect ;  little  r^ard  being  paid  to  the  following  invitation : — 

Such  &s  have  settled  in  new  ha.bitnlions  since  tlic  late  fire,  and  desire 
for  the  convenience  of  their  correspondence  to  publish  the  place  of  their 
present  abode,  or  to  give  notice  of  good*  lott  or  found,  may  repair  to 
the  corner  house  in  Bloomsbury.  or  on  the  cut  side  of  the  great  square 
(Bloomsbury  Square]  before  the  house  of  the  Right  Honourable  the 
Lord  Treasurer,  where  there  is  care  taken  for  the  receipt  and  publica- 
tioa  of  such  advertisements. 

Among  the  very  few  advertisements  relating  to  those 
great  calamities  is  the  following,  produced  by  the  Plague, 
which  is  inserted  in  the  Intelligencer^  June   22-30,  1665  : — 

THIS  is  to  certify  that  the  master  of  the  Cock  and  Bottle,  commonly 
called  the  Cock  alehouse,  at  Temple  bar,  hath  dismissed  his  ser- 
vaAti,  and  shut  up  his  bouse  for  this  long  vacation,  intending  (God  willing) 
to  return  at  Michaelmas  next,  so  that  all  persons  who  have  any  accounts 
or  farthings  belonging  to  the  said  house,  are  desired  to  repair  thither 
before  the  8th  of  this  instant,  July,  and  they  shall  receive  satisfaction. 

Relating  to  the  Fire,  the  following  from  the  London 
Gautte,  March  12,  1672-73,  was  the  notification  ; — 

THESE  are  to  give  notice  that  Edward  Barlet,  Oxford  carrier,  hath 
removed  his  Inn  in  London  from  the  Swan  at  Holborn  Bridge  to 
the  Oxford  Arms  in  Warwick  Lane,  where  he  did  inne  before  the  Fire. 
His  coaches  and  waggons  going  forth  on  their  usual  days,  Mondays, 
Wednewiays,  and  Fridays.  He  hath  also  a  hearse,  with  all  things 
ooavenicnt  to  carry  a  corpse  to  any  part  of  England. 

There  is  not,  however,  a  single  advertisement  relating  to 
any  of  those  temporary  conveniences  of  every  kind  which 
invariably  arise,  as  by  magic,  on  any  great  and  unusual 
emergency.  Indeed,  about  this  period,  and  for  a  long  time 
after,  the  London  Gazette,  which  was  the  official  organ  of  the 
day,  appeared  frequently  without  a  single  advertisement ; 
and  till  the  end  of  the  reign  of  Charles  IL,  it  was  only 
very  rarely  that  that  paper  contained  more  than  four  adver- 
tisements of  a  general  kind,  very  frequr?ntly  the  number 


78 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


being  less.     The  subjects  of  these  were  almost  exclusiv( 
thefts,   losses,   and   runaways.      Booksellere'   and   quad 
advertisements  were,  however,  even  then  frequent  in 
paper;  their  announcements  always  preceded  the  others' 
and  were  printed  in  a  different  type. 

In  i668  Mr  (afterwards  Sir)  Roger  L'Estrange  com- 
menced the  Merairy^  or  Aditeriisefnents  conc^tting  Trade^ 
which  does  not  seem  to  have  answered,  for  it  soon  became 
extinct.  Some  years  after,  the  now  well-known  scheme  of 
issuing  sheets  of  advertisements  gratuitously,  trusting  for 
profit  to  the  number  of  advertisers,  was  for  the  first  time 
attempted.  The  paper  started  on  this  principle  was  called 
the  City  Mercury^  and  appears  to  have  had  a  hard  struggle 
for  existence,  since  the  publishers  thought  it  necessary  to 
insert  in  No.  52  (March  30,  1673)  a  notice  of  this  tenor: — 

Notwithstanding  this  paper  has  been  published  so  long,  there  are 
many  persons  ignorant  of  ihc  design  and  advantage  of  it.  And  ii  every 
week  comes  to  the  hand  of  some,  both  in  City  and  Country,  that  never 
see  it  before:  For  which  reason  the  Publisher  thinks  himself  obliged 
(that  rU  may  have  benefit  by  it),  to  inform  them  that : — 

I.  He  gives  away  every  Monday  above  a  thousand  of  them  to  all  the 
BocksclUrs^  shops  and  m«/,  and  most  of  the  principal  coffee-houses  in 
Lomhn  and  IVestmimtfr,  Besides  they  are  now  sent  to  most  of  the 
cities  and  principal  towns  in  England. 

3.  Any  person  that  has  anything  to  insert  in  it.  as  the  titles  of  hooks^ 
houses  or  land  to  be  /«"/  or  soid,  persons  removing  from  one  place  to 
emother^  things  lost  or  siole^  pkysitians^  advertiununlSj  or  i$%xjuirUs  for 
houses  or  tamis  to  be  UU  or  sold,  for  phces  or  for  sft-vants,  &c^  may 
bring  or  send  them  to  the  Publisher,  Tho.  //orvhns,  in  George  Yani, 
in  Lombard  Street,  London,  who  will  carefully  insert  them  at  reason- 
able rales. 

3.  l^hat  this  way  of  publishing  is  much  more  advantageous  than 
giving  away  Sills  in  the  street,  is  certain,  for  where  there  is  one  of  them 
read,  there's  twenty  is  not  ;  and  a  thousand  of  these  cannot  be  sup- 
posed  to  be  read  by  less  than  twenty  times  the  number  of  persons ;  and 
done  for  at  least  the  twentieth  part  of  the  charge,  and  with  much  less 
trouble  and  greater  success  ;  as  has  been  experienced  by  many  persons 
that  have  things  inserted  in  it, 

This  paper  lived  but  a  short  time;  though  the  fact  that 


d 


NEWSPAPER  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED.      79 

the  proprietor  tinderlook  to  furnish  above  a  thousand  copies 
per  week  to  booksellers,  shops,  inns,  and  coffee-houses  in 
London,  and  that  it  was  sent  to  "most  of  the  cities  and 
principal  towns  in  England,"  clearly  indicates  that  the 
trade  began  to  be  aware  of  the  advantages  to  be  derived 
fom  publicity.  Soon  afterwards  a  paper  of  the  same  deno- 
lation,  but  published  by  another  speculator,  was  com- 
Incnced.  Its  appearance  and  purposes  were  told  to  the 
public  in  the  autumn  of  1675  by  circulars  or  handbills,  one 
of  which  has  fortunately  been  stored  up  in  the  British 
Museum.  As  this  curious  document  gives  a  comprehensive 
outline  of  the  system  of  newspaper  advertising,  as  it  ap- 
peared to  the  most  advanced  thinkers  in  the  reign  of 
Qurles  IX.,  we  reprint  it  here  in  (xtcnso: — 


ADVERTISEMENT. 

JIZ/IEREAS  divfrs  feepli  are  at  grmt  expense  in  printings  pulf 
^'^  lishmg^  and  disfetstng  of  Bills  of  Advertisements :  Observing 
kno  practical  and  Advanta^ous  to  Trade  and  SustnesSf  &*c.  this  Method 
«  in  parts  beyond  the  Seas. 

These  are  to  gcve  notice^  That  all  Persons  in  such  cases  concerned 
hene^crtk  may  have  pnblished  in  Print  in  the  Mercury  or  Bills  of  Adver- 
tisements, which  shall  come  out  every  week  on  Thursday  mornings  and  be 
ddivrred  and  diiperstd  in  every  hmtse  -where  the  Bills  of  Mortollity  are 
and  dsewhercy  the  Publications  and  Advertisements  of  all  the 
\foilffunHg^  or  any  other  matter  or  thing  not  herein  mentioned,  thai 
aksii  ndate  to  the  Advancement  of  Trade,  or  any  lawful  business  not 
pvmUi  in  propriay  to  any  other. 

Nocice  cf  all  Goods,  Merchandizes,  and  Ships  to  b«  sold,  the  place 
where  to  be  seen,  and  day  and  hour. 

Any  ships  lo  be  let  to  Freight,  and  the  time  of  their  departare,  the 
place  of  the  ^Taster's  habitation,  and  where  to  be  spoken  with  before 
aud  after  Exchani^  time. 

AU  Sbip4.  iheir  Names,  and  Burthens,  and  capacities,  and  where 
their  Inventarics  are  to  be  .^ecn. 

AU  other  Parcels  and  Materials  or  Furmture  for  shipping  in  like 
Banner. 

Any  Houses  Co  be  Let  or  Sold,  or  Mortgaged,  with  Notes  of  their 
Con  (en  (s. 

Any  Lands  or  Houses  in  Qty  or  Country,  to  be  Sold  or  Mortgaged. 


So 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


^ 


'fhe  Erection,  Alteration,  or  Removal  of  any  Stage-coach,  or  any 
common  Carrier. 

Adveniaements  of  any  considerable  Bargains  that  are  oflered. 

Any  curious  Invention  or  Experiment  that  is  to  be  exposed  to 
Public  view  or  Sale,  may  be  hereby  noLi6ed  when  and  where. 

Hereby  Commissioners  upon  Commissions  against  Bankrupts  mi 
give  large  notice. 

In  like  manner  .any  man  may  give  notice  as  he  pleaseth  to 
Creditors. 

Hereby  the  Settlement  or  Removal  of  any  Publick  Office  may 
notified. 

Hereby  all  School*master8,  and  School-mistresses,  and  Boardi 
schools,  and  Riding-schools  or  Academiea,  may  publish  the  place  wbei 
their  Schools  are  kept. 

And  in  like  manner,  where  any  Bathes  or  Hot'houses  are  kept. 

And  the  Place  or  Key  at  the  Waterside,  whereto  any  Hoy  or  Vessel 
doth  constantly  come  to  bring  or  carry  Goods ;  as  those  of  ior,  Faver* 
sham,  and  Mdiditonef  Sec. 

A  T  tM^  O^ce^  ivhuh  is  (0  be  k^t  for  thi  AdvertisaneMis,  any  Person 
^*  shaH  be  informed  {ttfithout  any  Fee)  where  any  Stage-coach  stands^ 
wher-e  any  common  Canier  lies,  that  comes  to  any  Inn  ^uiihtn  the  Bills  of 
Mortallity,  and  their  daies  of  coming  in  and  going  out. 

In  like  manner  all  the  accustomed  Hoys  or  Vessels  that  eomt  to  the 
uveral  Keys  from  the  several  Ports  of  England, 

All  Masters  and  Owners  of  the  several  StagC'Coaches^  and  the  Master' 
Carriers,  and  the  Masters  of  all  the  Hoys  and  Vessels  above  mentioned, 
are  desired  to  repair  between  this  and  Christmas  day  next,  to  the  Office 
kept  for  the  receipt  of  the  Adi'ertisements,  to  see  if  no  mistakes  be  in  their 
several  daies  and  rates,  that  the  said  Boolfs  may  be  declared  perfect^  which 
shall  be  MO  charge  to  the  Persons  concerned. 

The  Office  or  Place  where  any  Person  may  have  his  desires  answered  in 
anything  hereby  advertised,  is  kept  in  St  Michael's  Alley  in  Comhil, 
London,  right  against  H'illiams  Coffee-hcruse,  where  co$istani  attendance 
every  day  in  the  IVeeh  shall  be  given,  fvm  I^ine  in  the  Morning,  to  Fr 
in  the  Evening,  to  receive  the  desires  of  all  Persons  in  matters  of 
nature,  carefully  to  answer  them  in  the  same, 

raitb  alIotaanc^ 

LONDON: 
Printed  by  Andrew  Clark,  in  Aldersgaie  Street,  1675* 

In  accordance  with  this  prospectus,  the  first  number  ol 
the  City  Mcratry  appeared  November  4,  1675. 


Hdance 

^ft^ism 


NEWSPAPER  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED,      8i 

We,  who  are  familiar  with  the  thousand  and  one  tricks 
resorted  to  by  traders  in  order  to  attract  attention  to  their 
advertisements,  may  be  apt  lo  ridicule  the  artless  manner 
in  which  these  notices  were  brought  before  tlie  public  of 
the  seventeenth  century.  Different  types,  dividing  lines, 
woodcuts,  and  other  contrivances  to  catch  the  wandering 
eye,  were  still  unknown  ;  and  frequently  all  the  advertise- 
ments were  set  forth  in  one  string,  without  a  single  break, 
or  even  full  stop,  as  in  the  subjoined  specimen  from  the 
Loyal  Impartial  Mercury^  November  14-17,  1681 : — 

THE  House  in  the  Stmnd  wherein  the  Morocco  Embassador 
lately  resided  is  to  be  let,  fumished  or  unfurnished,  initrely  or 
ia  several  parts ;  a  house  in  Marklane  fit  for  a  marchant ;  also  very  good 
lod£:ui£S  not  far  from  the  Royal  Exchange,  fit  for  any  rnarchant  or  gentle- 
nan  lobe  let,  inquire  at  the  North  West  corner  of  the  Ko^al  Exchange, 
and  there  you  may  know  further  ;  inquiry  is  made  at  the  said  ofBce  for 
places  to  be  Stewards  of  courts,  liberties  or  franchises,  or  any  office  at 
kw,  or  places  to  be  auditor,  or  receiver,  or  steward  of  the  household, 
or  gentleman  of  horse  to  any  nobleman  or  gentleman ;  or  places  to  be 
darks  to  btewbouses,  or  wharfs,  or  suchlike  \  aUo  any  person  that  is 
willing  to  buy  or  sell  any  estates,  annuities,  or  mortgages,  or  let,  or 
take  any  house,  or  borrow  money  upon  the  bottom  of  8hip<t,  may  be 
iccoiQOdated  at  the  said  office.  j 

Conciseness  was  of  course  necessary  when  it  is  recollected* 
that  the  paper  was  only  a  folio  half-sheet,  though  the  ne^vs 
was  so  scanty  that  the  few  advertisements  were  a  boon  to 
the  reader,  and  were  sure  lo  be  read.  This  was  an  advan- 
tage peculiar  to  the  early  advertisers.  So  long  as  the  papers 
were  small,  and  the  advertisements  few  in  number,  the  trade 
announcements  were  almost  more  interesting  than  the  news. 
But  when  the  papers  increased  in  bulk,  and  advertisements 
became  common,  it  behoved  those  who  wished  to  attract 
special  attention  to  resort  to  contrivances  which  would 
distinguish  them  from  the  surrounding  crowd  of  com- 
petitors. 

The  editor  of  the  London  Meratry^  in  1681,  evidently 
jth  an  eye  to  making  his  paper  a  property  on  the  best  of 
■ 


83 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISINQ, 


■ 


all  principles,  requests  all  those  who  have  houses  for  sale  to 
advertise  in  his  columns,  *'  where,"  says  he,  "  farther  care  will 
be  taken  for  their  disposal  than  the  bare  publishing  them, 
by  persons  who  make  it  their  business."  Consequently  we 
frequently  meet  in  this  paper  with  notices  of  *'  A  delicate 
House  to  lett,"  agreeably  varied  with  advertisements  con- 
cerning spruce  beer,  scurvy  grass,  Dalfy's  elixir,  and  other 
specifics, '  Notwithstanding  that  the  utility  of  advertising  as  a 
means  of*  obtaining  publicity  was  as  yet  hardly  understood, 
the  form  of  an  advertisement,  according  to  modern  plans, 
was,  it  is  curious  to  observe,  frequently  adopted  at  this 
period  to  expose  sentiments  in  a  veiled  manner,  or  to 
call  attention  to  public  grievances.  /  Thus,  for  instance, 
the  first  numbers  of  the  Heraciiius  Ridens^  published  in 
i6Si,  during  the  effervescence  of  the  Popish  plots,  con- 
tained almost  daily  one  or  more  of  these  political  satires, 
of  which  the  following  may  serve  as  examples.  The  first, 
appears  February  4.  1 

IF  any  person  out  of  natural  curiosity  desire  to  be  furnished  wiih 
ships  or  castles  in  the  i\x,  or  any  sorts  of  prodigies,  apparitions, 
or  sirangc  sights,  the  better  to  fright  people  out  of  their  senses,  and  by 
persuading  them  dicre  arc  strange  judgraonls,  changes,  and  revolutions 
hanging  over  their  heads,  thereby  10  persuade  iheni  to  pull  them  down 
by  discontents,  fears,  jealousies,  and  seditions  ;  let  them  repair  to  Ben 
Harris,  at  his  shop  near  the  Royal  Exchange,  where  they  may  t>e  fur- 
nuihed  with  all  sorts  and  sizes  of  them,  at  very  cheap  and  easy  rates. 

There  is  abo  to  be  seen  the  strange  egg  with  the  comet  in  it  which 
was  laid  at  Rome,  but  sent  from  his  Holiness  to  the  said  Ben,  to  make 
reparations  for  his  dathagea  anstaincd,  and  as  a  mark  of  esteem  for  his 
Kcal  and  sufTerings  in  promoting  discord  among  the  English  bereticks^ 
and  sowing  the  seeds  of  sedition  among  the  citizens  of  London. 


The  edition  of  February  15  contains  the  following: — 


TF  any  protcstant  dissenter  desire  tliis  spring  time  to  be  furnished  with 
'*'  sedition  seeds,  or  the  true  protcstant  rue,  which  they  call  "herb  of 
grace,"  or  any  other  hopeful  plants  of  rebcliion.  let  them  repair  to  the 
Camous  French  gardeners  Monsieur  F.  Smith,  Msr.  L.  Curtis,  and  Msr. 
2.  Harris ;  where  they  may  have  not  only  of  all  the  kinds  which  gre 


I 


I^*EtVSPAPEa  ADVERTTSmC  FORESHADOWED.      S3 

ta  the  garden  of  the  late  keepers  of  the  liberty  of  England  ;  but  much 
new  variety  raiietl  by  the  art  and  industry  of  the  iaid  gardeners,  with 
dircciions  in  print  when  to  sow  them,  and  how  to  ciUUvate  them  when 
they  are  raised. 

You  may  also  have  there  either  green  or  pickled  sallads  of  rumours 
and  reports,  far  more  grateful  to  llie  palate,  or  over  a  glass  of  wine, 
than  your  French  Champignons  Or  mushroooui,  Popi&h  Olives,  or  Ea^l- 
bed  Gherkins. 

And  on  March  x  there  was  gi\'en  to  the  world : — 

A  MOST  ingenious  monkey,  who  can  both  write,  read,  and  speak  as 
-'*-  good  sense  as  his  ma<itcr,  nursed  in  the  kitchen  of  the  laic  Com- 
monwealth, and  when  they  broke  up  housekeeping  entertained  by  Nol 
Pioteclor,  may  be  seen  do  all  his  old  tricks  over  again,  for  pence  apiece, 
every  Wednesday,  at  his  new  master's,  Ben.  Uarris,  in  ComhiU. 

This  was  a  species  of  wit  similar  to  that  associated  with 
the  imaginary  signs  adopted  in  books  with  secret  imprints,  in 
order  to  express  certain  political  notions,  the  sentiments  of 
which  were  embodied  in  the  work  ;  for  instance,  a  pamphlet 
just  before  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War  is  called,  "  Vox 
Borealis,  or  a  Northeme  Discoverie,  etc.  Printed  by  Mar- 
gery Marprelale,  amidst  the  Babylonians,  in  Thwack  Coat 
Lane,  at  the  sign  of  the  Crab  Tree  Cudgell,  without  any 
privilege  of  the  Catercaps." 

One  John  Houghton,  F.R.S.,  who  combined  the  business 
of  apothecary  with  that  of  dealer  in  lea,  coffee,  and  choco- 
late, in  Bartholomew  Lane,  commenced  a  paper  in  1682, 
entitled  A  CoiUciion  for  the  Improvement  of  Husbandry  and 
Trade*  which  continued  to  be  issued  weekly  for  some  time  ; 
and  though  it  failed,  it  was  revived  again  on  March  30, 1692. 
It  was  modelled  on  the  same  plan  as  the  City  Merairy  of 
1675,  and  was  rather  ambitious  in  its  views.  It  consisted  of 
one  foho  half-sheet,  and  was  intended  to  '*  lay  out  for  a  large 


•  JohnNicholl,  in  his  "Literary  Anccdoles,"  vol.  iv.  p.  71,  calls  the 
editor  of  this  paper  Benjamin  Harris,  a  well-known  publisher  of 
pamphlets  in  the  reign  of  Charles  II.,  and  says  that  J.  Knighton  was 
the  editor  in  1693.  This  last  name  may  be  a  clerical  error  for 
Houghton* 


I 


I 


Jl 


^ 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


Iord,V 


correspondence,  and  for  the  advantage  of  tenant,  landlord 
com  merchant,  mealman,  baker,  brewer,  feeder  of  cattle, 
farmer,  maltster,  buyer  and  seller  of  coals,  hop  merchant, 
soap  merchant,  tallow  chandler,  wood  merchant,  their  cus- 
tomers," &c.  But  no  advertisements  proper  were  mentioned 
at  first  J  it  was  a  mere  bulletin  or  price-current  of  the  above- 
named  trades  and  of  auctions,  besides  shipping  news  and  the 
bills  of  mortality.  The  first  advertisement  appeared  in  the 
third  number,  it  was  a  "book-ad,"  and  figured  there  all 
by  itself;  and  it  was  not  till  the  8th  of  June  that  the 
second  advertisement  appeared,  which  assumed  the  follow- 
ing shape : —  « 

A^=i»  FOR  the  further  and  better  Improvement  of  Husbandry  and  V 

Trade  andfor  theEncouragemenltliereof,  cspcciallyiii  Middle- 
sex and  the  bordering  counties,  a  Person,  now  at  my  house  in  Bartholo* 
mew  Lane,  does  undertake  to  make  or  procure  made,  as  good  molt  of 
the  barley  of  these  counties,  and  of  that  Malt  as  good  Ale  as  is  made 
at  Derby,  Nottingham,  or  any  other  place  now  famous  for  that  liquor, 
and  that  upon  such  reasonable  terms  as  shall  be  to  general  satisfaction, 
the  extraordinary  charge  not  amounting  to  above  one  penny  per  bushd 
more  than  that  is  now  ;  only  thus  much  I  must  advise,  if  provision  be 
not  made  speedily,  the  opportunity  will  be  lost  for  the  next  malting 
Ume. 

Under  the  fostering  influence  of  Houghton,  who  appears 
to  have  been  keenly  aware  of  the  advantage  to  be  derived 
from  this  manner  of  obtaining  publicity,  advertisements  of 
every  kind  began  gradually  to  appear,  and  ere  long  the  ' 
booksellers,  who  for  some  lime  had  monopolised  this  paper, 
were  pushed  aside  by  the  other  trades ;  and  so  the  atten- 
tion of  the  public  is  by  turns  directed  to  blacking  balls, 
tapestry  hangings,  spectacles,  writing  ink,  coffins,  copper 
and  brass  work,  &c.  &c. ;  and  these  notices  increased  so 
rapidly  that,  added  to  No.  53,  which  appeared  on  July  28, 
1693,  there  is  a  half-sheet  of  advertisements,  which  is  intro- 
duced to  the  public  with  the  following  curious  notice : —        h 

My  Collection  I  shall  carr)*  on  as  usual.    Tliis  part  is  to  give  away,  ^^ 
and  those  who  like  it  not,  may  omit  the  reading.    I  believe  it  will  help 


I 


NEtVSFAPEJi  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED.      85 


Trade,  particularly  encourage  the  advertisers  to  increase  the  vent  of 
my  papers.  I  shall  receive  all  sorts  of  advertisements,  but  sliall  answer 
for  Uie  reasonablenefts  of  none,  unless  I  give  thereof  a  particular  charac* 
ter  on  which  (as  I  shall  give  it)  may  be  dependatue^  but  no  argument 
Uuu  others  deserve  not  as  well.  I  am  informed  that  seven  or  eight 
thousand  gazettes  are  each  time  printetl,  which  makes  them  the  most  uni* 
vers&l  Inlelligencers ;  but  I  '11  suppose  mine  their  first  handmaid,  because 
it  goes  (though  not  so  thick  yet)  to  most  parts  :  It 's  also  lasting  to  be 
put  into  Volumes  with  indexes,  and  particularly  there  shall  be  an  index 
of  all  the  advertisements,  whereby,  for  ages  to  come,  they  may  be 
taefuL 

This  first  sheet  consists  solely  of  advertisements  about 
newly  published  books,  but  it  concludes  : — 

^r  Whither  *tis  vorth  while  to  give  an  account  of  ships  sent  in  for 
lading  or  ships  arrived,  with  the  like  for  coaches  and  carriers  ;  or  to 
give  notice  of  approaching  fairs,  and  what  commodities  are  chiefly  sold 
there,  I  must  submit  to  the  judgment  of  those  concerned. 

The  advertisements  in  Houghton*s  CoUection  may  ap- 
pear strange  to  the  reader  accustomed  to  rounded  sen- 
tences and  glott-ing  peiiods,  but  in  the  reign  of  William  III. 
the  general  absence  of  education  rendered  the  social  element 
more  unsophisticated  in  character.  In  those  old  days  the 
advertiser  and  editor  of  the  paper  frequently  speak  in  the 
first  person  singular  j  also  the  advertiser  often  speaks  through 
the  editor.  A  few  specimens  taken  at  random  will  give  the 
reader  a  tolerably  good  idea  of  the  style  then  prevalent : — 

■  A  very  eminent  brewer,  and  one  I  know  to  be  a  very  honest 

gentleman,  wants  an  apprentice  ;  I  can  give  an  account  of  hiin. 

I  want  a  house  keeper  rarely  well  accomplished  for  that  pur- 
pose!    'Tis  for  a  suitable  gentleman. 

I  know  of  valuable  estates  to  be  sold, 

— ^  I  want  several  apprentices  for  a  valuable  tradesman. 

1  can  help  to  ready  money  for  any  library  great  or  small  or 

parcels  of  pictures  or  household  goods. 

I  want  a  negro  man  that  is  a  good  house  carpenter  and  a  good 

shoemaker. 

*«*  1  want  a  young  man  about  14  or  15  years  old  that  can  trim  and 
took  after  a  peruke.    'Tis  to  wait  on  a  merchant. 


i 


1 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERT ISING, 


I  want  a  pritty  boy  to  wait  on  a  gentleman  who  will  take  care 

of  him  and  put  him  out  an  spprentice. 

If  any  gentleman  wants  a  housekeeper,  I  believe  I  can  help  to 

the  best  in  England. 

Many  masters  want  appirentices  and  many  youths  want  masters. 

If  they  apply  themselves  to  me,  I'll  strive  to  help  them.     Also  for 
variety  of  valuable  services. 

By  reason  of  my  great  corresponding,  I  may  help  masters  to  appren- 
tices and  Apprentices  to  Masters.  And  now  is  wanting  Three  Boyis, 
one  wilhj^yo,  one  witb  ;^3Qi  and  a  Scholar  wilhj^6o. 

1  know  of  several  curious  women  that  wouM  wail  on  ladies 

be  housekeepers. 

Now  I  want  a  gocxl  usher'i  place  in  a  Grammar  school. 

I  want  a  young  man  that  can  write  and  read,  mow  and  roll  % 

garden,  use  a  gun  at  a  deer,  and  understand  country  sports,  and  to  vrait 
at  table,  and  such  like.  ^_ 

If  any  younn  man  that  plays  well  on  the  violin  and  writes  ft^| 

good  hand  desires  a  cierkihip,  I  can  help  him  to  ^20  a  year.  ^^ 

- — -  I  want  a  complete  yowng  man,  that  will  wear  livery,  to  wait  on  a 
veiy  valuable  gentleman,  but  he  must  know  how  to  play  on  a  violin  or 
a  0ute. 

I  want  a  genteel  footman  that  con  play  on  the  violin  to  w^t  on 

a  person  of  honour. 

If  I  can  meet  with  a  sober  man  that  has  a  counter  tenor  v«c<^^_ 

I  can  help  him  to  a  phice  worth ;^30  tltc  year  or  more.  ^H 

This  continual  demand  for  musical  servants  arose  from 
the  fashion  of  making  them  take  part  in  musical  perform- 
ances, of  which  cusloni  we  find  frequent  traces  in  Pepys. 
Altogether  the  most  varied  accomplishments  appear  to, 
have  been  expected  from  servants ;  as,  for  instance, — 


1 


If  any  Justice  of  the  Peace  wants  a  clerk,  I  can  help  to  on 

that  has  been  so  seven  years  ;  understands  accounts,  to  be  butler,  also 
to  receive  money.     He  also  can  shave  and  buckle  wigs. 

The  editor  frequently  gives  special  testimony  as  to  the 

respectability  of  the  advertiser : —  ^ 

If  any  one  wants  a  wet  nunc,  I  can  help  them,  as  I  am  in* 

formed,  to  a  very  good  one. 

I  know  a  gentlewoman  whose  family  is  only  her  husband  her- 
self and  maid,  and  would  to  keep  her  company  lake  care  of  a  child. 


d 


NEWSPAPER  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED.      87 


two  or  three,  of  ihree  years  old  or  upwards.  She  is  my  fjood  friend, 
uid  sach  a  one  that  whoever  put  Lheir  children  to  her,  I  am  sure  will 
eive  me  ihonks,  and  think  themselves  happy,  let  Ihcm  be  what  rank 
they  will. 

I  have  been  lo  Mr  Ftrmin's  work  house  in  Litltc  Britain,  and 

seen  a  jn"eat  many  pieces  of  what  seems  to  me  excellent  linen,  made 
by  the  poor  in  and  about  London,  ile  will  sell  it  at  reasonable  rates, 
and  I  believe  whatever  house  keepers  go  there  to  buy  will  not  repent, 
and  on  Wednesdays  and  Saturdays  in  the  forenoon  he  is  always  there 
himselt 

I  have  met  with  a  curious  gardener  that  will  fumLsh  any  body 

that  sends  to  me  for  fruit  trees,  and  floreal  .shrub;,  and  garden  seeds. 
I  have  made  him  promise  with  all  solemnity  that  whatever  he  scnd-s 
shall  be  purely  good,  and  I  verily  believe  he  may  be  depended  on. 

One  that  has  ivaited  on  a  lady  divers  years,  and  understands  all 

aflairs  in  housekeeping  and  the  needle,  desires  some  such  place.  She 
a  discreet,  staid  body. 


At  Other  times  Houghton  recommends  "a  tidy  foot- 
roan,"  a  "  quick,  well-looking  fellow,"  or  "  an  extraor- 
dinary cook-maid ; '*  and  obberves  of  a  certain  ladysmaid, 
who  offered  her  services  through  his  CoHtction^  "and  truly 
she  looks  and  discourses  passing  well.''  Occasionally  he 
also  guarantees  the  situation  ;  thus,  applying  for  "a  suit- 
able man  that  can  read  and  write,  and  will  wear  a  Hvery," 
he  adds  for  the  information  of  flunkeys  in  general:  "I 
believe  that  'twill  be  a  very  good  place,  for  'tis  to  serve  a 
fine  gentleman  whom  I  well  know,  and  he  will  give  ;^5 
the  year  besides  a  livery."  Imagine  Jeames  of  Belgravia 
being  told  he  should  have  £^  for  his  important  annual 
Bervices  !  Another  time  **  'tis  to  wait  on  a  very  valuable 
old  batchelor  gentleman  in  the  City."  Again,  he  recom- 
mends a  Protestant  French  gentleman,  who  is  willing  to 
wait  on  some  person  of  quality,  and  Houghton  adds, 
"  from  a  valuable  divine,  my  good  friend,  I  have  a  very 
good  character  of  him."  Of  a  certain  surgeon,  whom  he 
advertises,  he  says,  "  I  have  known  him,  I  believe,  this 
twenty  years."  All  these  recommendations  bear  an  unmis- 
takable character  of  truth  and  honesty  on  their  face,  and  are 


3 


88 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


very  different  from  the  commendatory  paragraphs  which 
nowadays  appear  in  the  body  of  a  paper  because  of  long 
advertisements  which  are  to  be  found  in  the  outer  sheet 
Nor  is  the  worthy  man  ever  willing  to  engage  his  word 
further  than  where  he  can  speak  by  experience  ;  in  other 
ca^es,  an  *'  I  believe,"  or  some  such  cautious  expressioOj 
invariably  appears.  Recommending  a  hairdresser,  hi 
says — 


I  know  a  peruke  maker  that  pvetenJs  to  make  perukes  extra- 
ordinary fashionable,  and  will  sell  good  pcunyworths  ;  I  can  direct  to 
him. 


1 


And  once,  when  a  number  of  quack  advertisements  had 
found  their  way  into  the  paper,  old  Houghton,  with  a  sly 
nod  and  a  merry  twinkle  in  his  eye,  almost  apparent  as 
one  reads,  drily  puts  his  "index"  above  them,  with  t 
following  caution  : — 


tm 


0"  Pray,  mind  the  preface  to  this  h:i1f  sheet.  Like  lawyers,  I  take 
all  causes.     1  may  fairly  ;  who  likes  not  may  stop  here. 

A  tolerably  broad  hint  of  his  disbelief  in  the  said  nostrums 
and  elixirs.  Even  booksellers  had  to  undergo  the  test 
of  his  ordeal,  and  having  discovered  some  of  their  short- 
comings, he  warned  them —  ^| 

*«*  I  desire  all  booksellers  to  send  me  no  new  titles  to  old  book^ 
for  they  will  be  rejected. 

When  a  book  of  the  right  reverend  father  in  God  John 
Wilkins,  late  Bishop  of  Chester,  was  published,  Houghton 
recommended  it  in  patronising  terms — 

I  hare  read  this  book,  and  do  think  it  a  piece  of  great  ingenuitjfj^l 

becoming  the  Bishop  of  Chester,  and  is  useful  for  a  great  many  pur* 
poacs,  both  profit  and  pleasure. 

Of  another  work  he  says —  ^| 

With  delight  have  I  read  over  this  book,  and  think  it  a  rer; 

good  one. 


NEWSPAPER  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED.      89 

Thus,  notwithstanding  the  primitive  form  of  the  advertise- 
ments, the  benefit  to  be  derived  from  this  mode  of  publicity 
began  to  be  more  and  more  understood.  It  was  not  with- 
out great  trouble,  however;  and  it  was  necessary  that 
Houghton  should  constantly  direct  the  attention  of  the 
trading  community  to  the  resources  and  advantages  of 
advertising,  which  he  did  in  the  most  candid  manner.  He 
simply  and  abruptly  puts  the  question  and  leaves  those 
interested  to  solve  it.    Thus  : — 

Whether  advertisements  of  schools,  or  houses  and  lodgings 

about  London  may  be  useful,  I  submit  to  Uiosc  concerned. 

And  the  answer  came ;  for  a  few  days  after  the  public 
were  informed  that 

At  one  Mr  Packer's,  in  Crooked  Lane,  next  the  Dolphin,  are 

very  good  Lodgings  to  be  let,  where  there  \%  freedom  from  noise,  and 
a  pretty  garden. 

Freedom  from  noise  and  a  pretty  garden  in  a  street  lead- 
ing from  Eastcheap  to  Fish  Street  Hill  I  Shortly  after 
Houghton  calmly  observes : — 

■  I  now  find  advertisements  of  schools,  liouses  and  lodgings  in 
and  about  London  arc  thought  uscrul. 

He  then  starts  other  subjects  : — 

1  believe  some  advertisements  about  bark  and  timber  might  be 

of  use  both  to  bu]rer  and  seller. 

*,*  1  find  several  barbers  think  it  their  interest  to  take  in  these 
impers,  and  I  believe  the  rest  \n\\  when  they  understand  them. 

The  barber's  shop  was  then  the  headquarters  of  gossip, 
as  it  took  a  long  time  to  shave  the  whole  of  a  man's  beard 
and  curl  a  sufficient  quantum  of  hair  or  wig,  as  worn  in 
those  old  days,  and  so  the  man  of  suds  was  expected  to 
entertain  his  customers  or  find  them  entertainment.  Next 
turning  his  attention  to  the  clergy,  Houghton  offers  that 
body  a  helping  hand  also  : — 

•»•  I  would  gladly  serve  tlic  clergy  in  all  their  wantt 


90  mSTOR  Y  OF  AD  VERTISIXC, 

How  he  understood  this  friendly  help  soon  appeared  :^] 

If  any  divine  or  their  relicts  have  complete  sets  of  mcmuscri] 

sermons  upon  the  Epistles  and  the  Gospels,  the  Catechism  or  FestiTO 
I  can  help  them  to  a  customer. 

The  use  of  second-hand  semions  was  not  unknown  in 
those  days,  and  detection  was  of  course  much  less  imminent^ 
than  now.     Then —  I 


I  have  sold  all  the  manuscript  sermons  I  had  and  many  more, 

and  if  any  has  any  more  to  dispose  of  that  are  good  and  legibly  writ,! 
believe  I  can  help  them  to  costomers. 

Possibly  the   "many  more"   was  a  heavy   attempt 
humour;  but  anyhow  the  sermon  article  was  in  great  d 
mand,  arid  his  kindly  services  did  not  rest  there: — 


I 


If  any  incumbent  within  20  miles  of  London  will  dispose  of  his 

living,  I  can  help  him  to  a  chapman. 

A  rectory  of  ;^ioo  per  annum  in  as  good  an  air  as  any  in  Eng- 
land, 60  miles  offi  and  an  easy  cure  is  to  be  commuted, 

A  vicaridgc  and  another  cure  which  requires  service  but  once  a 

month,  value  £,'^.     'Tis  in  Kent  about  60  miles  from  London. 

And  so  on,  proving  that  the  clergy  had  not  refused  the 
friendly  offer,  and  were  fully  as  ready  as  the  tradesman  to 
avail  themselves  of  this  means  of  giving  vent  to  their  wani 
and  requirements. 

Houghton  would   occasionally  do   a  little  business 
oblige  a  friend,  though  it  is  fair  to  assume  that  he  particij 
pated  in  the  profits  : — 

*,*  For  a  friend,  I  can  sell  wry  good  flower  of  brimstone,  etc, 
cheap  or  cheaper  than  any  in  town  docs  ;  and  I  '11  sell  any  good  com* 
modity  for  any  man  of  repute  if  desired. 

I  find  publishing  for  others  docs  them  kindness,  therefore  note  5 

1  sell  lorengcs  for  8d.  the  ounce  which  good  drinkers  commend  against 
heartburn,  and  are  circellent  for  women  with  child,  to  prevent  mis- 
carriages ;  also  the  true  lapis  nephriiicus  which  is  esteemed  excellent  for 
Ihc  stone  by  wearing  it  on  the  wrist. 

I  would  gladly  buy  for  a  friend  the  historical  part  of  ComeUi 

Lnpidc  upon  the  Bible. 


NEWSPAPER  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED,     91 


Besides  tlie  above  particular  advertisements,  the  paper 
frequently  contained  another  kind,  which  to  us  may  appear 
singularly  vague  and  unbusinesslike,  but  which  no  doubt 
perfectly  answered  their  purpose  among  a  comparatively 
minute  metropolitan  population,  the  subjects  of  William 
IIL    We  allude  to  general  advertisements  such  as  these  : — 

Last  week  was  imported 
Bacon  by  Mr  Edwards. 
Cheese  by  Mr  EraHcia. 
Corral  Beads  by  Mr  pa^en. 
Crabs  Eyes  by  Mr  I/arvfy. 
Horse  Hair  by  Afr  Becens. 
Joynted  Babies  by  Mr  Harrison, 
Mapps  by  Mr  Thompson. 
Onmge  Flower  Water  by  Mr  BtUamy, 
Prospective  Glasses  by  Mr  Mas^m. 
SniTron  by  Mr  Western , 
Sturgeon  by  Afr  K^t. 
If  any  dcsicc  it  other  things  may  be  inserted. 

In  Similar  style  a  most  extraordinary  variety  of  other 
tiungs  imported  are  advertised  in  subsequent  numbers, 
including  crystal  stones,  hops,  oxguts,  incle,  juniper,  old 
pictures,  onions,  pantiles,  quick  eels,  rushes,  spruce  beer, 
sturgeon,  trees,  brandy,  chimney  backs,  caviar,  tobacco- 
pipes,  whale-fins,  bugle,  canes,  sheep's-guts,  washballs  and 
snuff,  a  globe,  aqua  fortis,  shruffe,  quills,  waxworks,  ostrich 
feathers,  scamony,  clagiary  paste,  Scotch  coals,  sweet  soap, 
onion  seed,  gherkins,  mum,  painted  slicks,  soap-berries, 
mask-leather,  and  so  on,  for  a  long  time,  only  giving  the 
names  of  the  importers,  without  ever  mentioning  their 
addresses,  until  at  last  a  bright  idea  struck  this  gentleman, 
who  seems  to  have  been  one  of  those  vulgarly  said  to  be 
before  their  lime,  but  who  are  in  fact  the  pioneers  wlio 
pave  tlie  way  for  all  improvements ;  and  so  the  Colkctiott 
was  enriched  with  the  following  notice : — 

If  desired  lit  set  down  the  places  of  abode,  and  I  am  sure 
*lwiU  be  of  good  use  :  for  I  am  often  asked  it. 


93  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 

Houghton  was  indeed  so  well  aware  of  the  utility  of 
giving  the  addresses,  that  in  order  to  render  his  paper 
more  permanently  useful,  he  published,  apparently  on  his 
own  account,  not  only  the  addresses  of  some  of  the  prin- 
cipal shops,  but  also  a  list  of  the  residences  of  the  leading 
doctors.  From  this  we  gather  that  in  June  1694  there 
were  93  doctors  in  and  about  London,  also  that  Dr  (after- 
wards Sir)  Hans  Sloane  lived  at  Montague  House  (now 
the  British  Museum),  Dr  Radcliffe  in  Bow  Street,  and  Dr 
Garth,  by  Duke  Street.  At  the  conclusion  of  this  list 
publisher  says : — 


1  shall  also  go  the  round,  T.  of  Counsellors  and  Altomeys  ;  11. 

Surgeons  and  Gardincrs  ;  III.  of  Lawyers  and  Attorneys  ;  iv.  Scho 
and  Woodmongers  ;  V.  IJrokers,  coaches  and  carriers,  and  such  likci 
and  then  round  again,  beginning  with  Phyailians. 


1 


Thus  by  untiring  perseverance,  and  no  small  amount 
thought  and  study,  Houghton  trained  his  contemporari 
in  the  art  of  advertising,  and  made  them  acquainted  witK 
the  valuable  assistance  to  be  derived  from  a  medium  which, 
as  Alexis  de  TocqueviUe  remarks,  drops  the  same  thought 
into  a  thousand  minds  at  almost  the  same  period.  Apart 
from  the  interest  which  his  papers  have  on  the  subject  we 
have  been  considering,  they  are  fuU  of  graphic  details  which 
throw  a  clear  and  effective  light  on  these  old  and  bygone 
times.  What  can  give  a  more  vivid  picture  of  the  state  of 
the  roads  in  this  country  in  winter-time,  nearly  two  cen- 
turies ago,  than  the  following  notice  extracted  from  the 
CoUccdon  for  Husbandry  and  Trade^  March  10,  1693; —    m 

Roads  are  filled  with  snow,  we  arc  forced  to  ride  with  the 

paquet  over  hedges  and  ditches.  This  day  seven-night  my  boy  with 
the  paquet  and  two  gentlemen  were  seven  hours  riding  from  Dunstable 
to  Hockley,  but  three  nuies,  liardly  escaping  with  their  lives,  being 
often  in  liules  and  forced  to  be  drawn  out  with  ropes.  A  man  and  a 
wotnan  were  found  dead  within  a  mile  hence.  I  fear  I  have  lost  my 
letter-carrier,  who  has  not  been  heard  01  since  Thursday  lost.  Six 
hordes  lie  dead  on  the  road  between  Hockley  and  Brickhill,  smollicred. 


i 


tTEWSJPAPMR  ADVERTISING  FORESHADOWED.     93 

I  wn  told  last  nig^t  that  lately  was  foand  dead  near  BeaumazaU  three 
SMen  and  three  horses. 

At  this  picture  of  those  good  old  times  for  which  people 
who  know  nothing  about  them  now  weep,  we  will  stop. 
The  rest  of  the  story,  so  far  as  the  development  of  adver- 
tiianents  is  concerned,  will  be  told  in  strict  chronological 
Older. 


CHAPTER  VL 


^ 


DBVELOPMENT  OF  ADVERTISING* 

WE  have  now  arrived  at  a  period  when  the  value 
of  advertising  was  beginning  to  make  itself  felt 
among  even  the  most  conservative,  and  when  it  at  last 
began  to  dawn  upon  the  minds  so  unaccustomed  to  change 
or  iniprovement,  that  a  new  era  in  the  history  of  trade  was 
about  to  commence,  even  if  it  had  not  commenced  already. 
So  the  newspapers  of  the  latter  half  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury begin  to  offer  fresh  inducements  to  the  reader,  no  matter 
whether  to  the  antiquarian  or  simply  curious.  And  he 
must  be  a  flippant  reader  indeed  who  is  not  impressed  by 
these  files  of  musty  and  bygone  journals,  pervaded  by  the 
spirit  of  a  former  age,  and  redolent  of  the  busy  doings  of 
men  who  generations  ago  were  not  only  dead  but  forgotten. 
Few  things  could  be  more  suggestive  of  the  steady  progress 
of  Time,  and  the  quite  as  steady  progress  of  his  congeners, 
Death  and  Forgetfulness,  than  these  papers.  Novelists  and 
essayists  have  described  in  most  eloquent  words  the  feelings 
which  are  aroused  by  the  perusal  of  suddenly-discovered 
and  long-forgotten  letters  ;  and  similar  feelings,  though  of  a 
much  more  extended  description,  are  evoked  by  a  glance 
through  any  volume  of  these  moth-eaten  journals.  A  writer 
of  a  few  years  back,  speaking  of  the  advertisements,  says, 
"  As  we  read  in  the  old  musty  files  of  newspapers  those  ftaive 
announcements,  the  very  hum  of  bygone  generations  seems 
to  rise  to  the  ear.  The  chapman  exhibits  his  quaint 
wares,  the   mountebank  capers  again  upon  his  stage,  wc 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  ADVERTIsmC, 


95 


have  the  living  portrait  of  the  highwayman  flying  from 
justice,  we  see  the  old-china  auctions  thronged  with  ladies 
of  quality  with  their  attendant  negro-boys,  or  those  by  *  inch 
of  candle-light/  forming  many  a  Schalken-like  picture  of 
light  and  shade  ;  or  later  still  we  have  Hogarthian  sketches 
of  the  young  bloods  who  swelled  of  old  along  the  Pall- Mall. 
We  trace  the  moving  panorama  of  men  and  manners  up  to 
our  own  less  demonstrative,  but  more  earnest  times;  and  all 
these  cabinet  pictures  are  the  very  daguerreotypes  cast  by 
the  age  which  they  exhibit,  not  done  for  effect,  but  faithful 
reflections  of  those  insignificant  items  oi  life  and  things, 
too  small,  it  would  seem,  for  the  generalising  eye  of  the  his- 
torian, however  necessary  to  clothe  and  fill  in  the  dry  bones 
of  his  history."  Indeed,  turning  over  these  musty  volumes 
of  newspapers  is  for  the  imaginative  mind  a  pleasure  equal 
to  reading  the  TatUrox  Spectator^  or  the  plays  of  the  period. 
By  their  means  Cowper's  idea  of  seeing  life  "  through  the 
loopholes  of  retreat "  is  realised,  and  characteristic  facts  and 
landmarks  of  progress  in  the  history  of  civilisation  are 
brought  under  our  notice,  as  the  busy  life  of  bygone  genera- 
tions bursts  full  upon  us.  We  see  the  merchant  at  hLs  door, 
and  inside  the  dimly-lit  shops  obser\'e  the  fine  ladies  of  the 
time  deep  in  the  mysteries  of  brocades  and  other  articles  of 
the  feminine  toilet,  whose  very  names  are  now  lost  to  evea 
the  mercers  themselves.  And  not  alone  intent  on  flowered 
mantuas  and  paduasoys  are  they,  for  we  can  in  fancy  see  them, 
keen  ever  to  a  fancied  bargain,  pricing  Chinese  teapots  or 
Japanese  cabinets,  and  again  watch  them  as,  with  fluttering 
hearts,  they  assist  at  lotteries  for  valuables  of  the  quality  fami- 
liar to  "knockouts"  of  our  own  time.  We  hear  the  lament 
of  the  beau  who  has  lost  his  clouded  amber-headed  cane 
or  his  heart  at  the  playhouse,  and  listen  to  the  noisy  quacks 
vending  their  nostrums,  each  praising  his  own  wares  or  de- 
preciating those  of  his  rivals.  We  seethe  dishonest  serving- 
man  rush  past  us  on  the  road  carrying  the  heterogeneous 
treasures  which  have  tempted  his  cupidity.    Soon  the  '*  Hue 


I 

1 


96  msrVR  Y  OF  AD  V£R  TJSING. 

and  Cry"  brings  the  same  ill-favoured  malefactor  before  u: 
in  an  improved  character  as  horsc-stealcr  and  highwayman  ; 
and  ere  long  we  hear  of  the  conclusion  of  his  short  drama  at 
Tyburn.  Thus  the  various  advertisements  portray,  with  mo 
or  less  vividness,  lineaments  of  the  times  and  the  charact 
of  the  people. 

That  the  newspapers  were  early  used  for  the  purpose 
giving  contradictions  by  means  of  advertisement,  or  effecting 
sly  puffs,  is  shown  by  the  following,  which  was  doubtless 
intended  to  call  attention  to  the  work,  and  which  was  pu 
lished  in  the  form  of  an  ordinary  paragraph  in  the  Afodd 
Intelligence^  April  15-22,  1647  : — 

There  came  forth  a  book  this  day  relating  how  a  divil  did  appear 
in  the  house  or  yard  of  Mr  Young,  mercer  in  Lombard  St,  with  a 
great  many  particulars  there  related  ;  It  is  desired  by  the  gentleman  of 
that  house,  and  those  of  his  family,  that  all  that  arc  credulous  of  those 
things  (which  few  wise  are),  may  be  assured  that  its  all  fabulous, 
and  that  there  was  never  any  such  thing.  It  is  (rue  there  is  a  do^,  and 
that  dog  hath  a  chain,  and  the  gentleman's  son  played  upon  an  instro- 
mcnt  of  music  for  his  recreation, — but  these  arc  to  be  seen,  which  ft 
spirit  sure  never  was.  « 

There  is  a  logical  deduction  about  the  conclusion  of  this' 
which  it  is  to  be  hoped  forced  itself  upon  the  minds  of 
those  who  were  ready  to  believe  not  only  in  the  existence 
but  in  the  visibility  of  spirits ;  and  if  the  paragraph  was  but 
a  lift  for  the  book  after  all,  it  surely  deserved  success,  if  only 
for  the  quaint  way  in  which  it  admits  to  the  dog  and  the  boy 
and  the  musical  instrument,  a  combination  equal  upon  an 
emergency  to  the  simulation  of  a  very  powerful  devil.  In  the 
very  next  edition  of  the  same  paper  wc  come  upon  a  para- 
graph which  is  even  more  direct  in  its  advertising  properties, 
which,  in  fact,  might  have  been  dictated  by  editorial  "  friend- 
ship" in  these  days,  instead  of  in  the  first  half  of  the  seven- 
teenth century.     It  nms  thus : — 

You  should  have  had  a  notable  omiion  made  by  the  Bishop  of  Ango 
lesrae  and  Grand  .Mmoner  to  his  Majesty  of  England,  at  a  Conveotic 
in  Paris  in  favour  of  the  Calholicks  in  England  and  Ireland,  but 


The  ij.of  May. 

I-EEKELY 

cvvcs   from    Italy^ 

SRMANIE,  HVNGARI  A, 

OHEMIA,  the  PALATINATE, 
France,  and  the  Lo^  Countries. 


I 


tHfUtti.  outoftheLoTtf  T>vt6  Qofk. 


London, 
iWd  by  Z  V.  for  TsOchokis  iBoume  and  ThomM 
fer,»Ddaie  to  be  fold  at  thdr  fhopsaCth] 
&dlifi^f,  and  in  To^-Ua^^ci^' 


i6zx. 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  ADVERTISING.  97 

OTcrlazse  it  will  be  mftde  public  the  beginning  of  next  week  by  itself 
it  is  worth  reading  especially  b^  those  who  are  for  a  general!  toleration 
when  they  may  clearly  see  it  is  the  broad  way  to  the  destniction  of 
these  kingdomznes. 

"What  is  considered  by  many  to  be  the  first  b&tia  fide 
and  open  advertisement  ever  published  appears  in  a  paper 
entitled  Several  Proceedings  in  Parliament^  and  is  found 
under  the  date  November  28-December  5,  1650.  It  runs 
thus : — 

BY  the  late  tnimilt  made  the  37  of  November,  whereof  j-ou  have 
the  narration  before ;  in  the  night  time  in  Bcxfield,  in  the  county 
ofKorfollc,  about  12  Horses  were  stolen  out  of  the  town,  whereof  a  bay- 
bald  Gelding  with  three  white  feet,  on  the  near  buttock  marked  with 
R.  F.,  9  or  10  years  old.  A  bay-bald  Mare  with  a  wall-eye  and  a  red 
star  in  her  face,  the  near  hind  foot  white,  7  years  old.  A  black  brown 
Mare,  trots  all,  6  years  old.  Whomsoever  brings  certain  intelligence 
where  they  arc  to  Mr  Badcraft  of  Ikxficld,  in  Norfolk,  they  shall  have 
aos.  for  each  Horse. 

The  following  number  of  the  same  paper,  that  for  De- 
cember 5-12,  1650,  contains  this  : — 

A  bright  Mare,  12  hands  high,  one  white  foot  behind,  a  white  patch 
below  the  saddle,  near  the  side,  a  black  main,  a  tailc  cut,  a 
natural  ambler,  about  10//.  price,  stolne,  Dccemb.  3.  ncarc  Guilford. 
John  Rylands,  a  butcher,  tall  and  ruddy,  flaxen  hairc,  about,  30  years  9f 
■ge,  is  suspected.  Mr.  Brounloc,  a  stocking  dier,  near  the  Three 
Craynes,  in  Tbames^s  Streete,  will  satisfy  those  who  can  make  discovery. 

In  16551  Lilly  the  astrologer  availed  himself  of  what  was 
then  considered  the  new  plan  for  ventilating  a  grievance, 
and  accordingly,  in  the  Perfect  Diurnal  of  April  9-16,  he 
published  the  following  fuU-fledged  advertisement,  one  of 
the  earliest  extant : — 

An  Advertisement  from  Mr  William  IMly. 

WHEREAS  there  are  several  flying  reports,  and  many  fal?e  and 
scandalous  speeches  in  the  mouth  of  many  people  in  this  City, 
tending  unto  this  eflect,  viz.  :  That  I,  William  Lilly,  should  predict  or 
say  there  would  be  a  great  Fire  in  or  near  the  Old  Exchange,  and  another 
in  St  John's  Street,  and  another  in  the  Strand  near  Temple  Bar,  and  in 
leveial  other  parts  of  the  City.   These  are  to  certifie  the  whole  City  that 

G 


98 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


■O- 

1 


I  protest  before  Almighty  Cod,  that  I  never  wrote  any  such  thing", 
never  spoke  any  such  word,  or  ever  thought  of  any  such  thing,  or 
or  all  of  those  particular  Places  or  Slrecls,  or  any  other  parts.     The 
untruths  are  forged  by  ungodly  men  and  women  to  disturb  the  quij 
people  of  this  City,  to  amaze  the  Nation,  and  to  cast  asjiersions  an^ 
scandals  on  me  :  God  defend  this  City  and  all  her  inhabitants,  not  onlj 
from  Fire,  but  from  the  Plague,  Pestilence,  or  Famine,  or  any  otl 
accident  or  mortality  that  may  be  prejudicial  unto  her  greatnesse- 

This,  if  noticed  and  recollected,  must  have  destroyed, 
at  least  damaged,  Lilly's  fame,  when  the  great  fire  really  did 
take  place  ;  but  then  eleven  years  is  a  long  time,  long 
enough  indeed  to  have  included  many  and  various  pro- 
phecies. Certainly  modern  astrologers  would  have  turned 
to  account  the  mere  fact  of  having  been  accused  of  pro 
phesying  such  a  fire  or  any  portion  of  it  In  a  previo 
chapter  we  have  given  a  specimen  of  the  earliest  advcrtis 
ments  with  regard  to  the  coaching  arrangements  of  this  lira 
and  now  append  the  following,  which  would  seem  to  show, 
singular  as  it  may  appear,  that  the  simpler  form,  in  fact 
the  first  principle,  of  travelling  by  means  of  saddle-horses, 
was  not  arranged  until  after  coaches  had  been  regularly 
appointed.  It  appears  in  the  Mercuriui  Politicus  tow 
the  end  of  the  year  1658  : — 

The  Postmasters  on  Chester  RoaJ^  petilioniHg,  have  rectived  Ot 
and  {ic  accordingly  publish  the  Jollmsnng  advertisfment  : — 

ALL  Gentlemen,  Merchants,  and  others,  who  have  occasion  to  ti 
•^*-  between  London  and  Wrstchester^  Manchester^  and  Warringtc 
or  any  other  town  upon  that  Road,  for  the  accommodation  of  Trade, 
dispatch  of  Business,  and  case  of  Purse,  upon  every  Monday,  Wednesday, 
and  FridayMoming,  betwixt  Six  and  icn  of  the  Clock,  at  the  house  of  Mr 
Christopher  Charteris^  at  llie  sign  of  the  Hart's-Hom,  in  VVcst-Smith- 
fi eld,  and  Post-Master  there,  and  at  the  Posl-Mastcr  of  Chester^  at  th< 
Post-Master  of  Manchester^  and  at  the  Post-master  of  Warrin^ton^  ml 
have  a  good  and  able  single  Horse,  or  more,  furnished  at  Threepence 
Mile,  without  the  chaise  of  a  Guide ;  and  so  likewise  at  the  house 
Mr  Thomas  Challencr^  Po&t-Ma&ter,  at  Stone  in  Staffordshire,  uj 
every  Tuesday,  Thursday,  and  Saturday's  Moniing,  to  go  for  Londo 
And  so  likewise  at  all  the  several  Post-Masters  upon  the  Road,  wl 
will  have  all  such  set  days  so  many  Horses  with  Furniture  iu  readii 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  ADVERTISING, 


99 


1  the  Riders  without  any  slay  to  carry  them  to  or  from  any 
the  places  aforesaid,  in  Four  rfay^,  as  well  to  Lonthn  as  fmm  thence, 
and  to  places  nearer  in  less  time,  according  as  their  occasions  sboil 
Wqmre,  ihey  iogaging  at  the  firit  Stage  where  they  lake  Horse, 
for  ibc  safe  delivery  of  the  same  to  the  next  immedtnte  Stage,  and  not  to 
tide  that  HorMS  without  consent  of  the  Post^Mastcr  by  whom  he  rides, 
ood  so  from  Stage  to  Stage  to  the  Journeys  end.  Aii  these  wka 
tmtmJ  U  ride  this  way  are  desired  to  give  a  liilU  twtiee  beforehand^ 
ij C9^venxmily  ihey  ccMj  to  the  several  Post-maslers  Tt'here  they  first  take 
harse^  Vfherehy  they  may  be  furnished  with  so  many  Horses  as  the  Riders 
ihali  require  with  exfeKiiiion.  Tliis  undertaking  began  the  28  of  June 
2658  at  ail  the  Places  abovesaid,  and  so  continues  by  the  several  Post- 
UAstcrs. 

It  is  hard  to  understand  how,  even  if  he  received 
notice  beforehand,  the  first  postmaster  was  enabled  to 
guarantee  the  readiness  of  the  remaining  officials,  unless 
iDdecd  messengers  were  constantly  passing  backwards  and 
forwards  on  each  route.  The  intimation  that  the  three- 
pence per  mile  does  not  include  a  guide  docs  something  to 
dear  up  the  mystery*  and  at  the  same  time  gives  an  idea  as 
to  the  state  of  the  roads  at  that  time.  One  would  imagine 
from  the  existence  of  such  a  being  that  the  track  was 
across  a  morass,  or  by  the  side  of  a  precipice,  and  not  along 
la  highroad  of  "  merrie  England,"  in  those  good  old  times 
for  which  so  many  sigh  now.  Who,  although  the  necessity 
for  tlie  highway  is  far  less  than  it  was  two  hundred  years 
ago,  cao  imagine  a  guide  being  required  nowadays  for  no 
other  purpose  than  that  of  preventing  the  wayfarer  from 
straying  off  the  beaten  track,  and  losing  his  horse,  and 
probably  himself,  in  some  gigantic  slough  or  quagmire  I  It 
is  with  difficulty  one  can  now  realise  to  himself  the  fact, 
that  as  late  as  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century,  the 
interior  of  the  country  was  little  better  than  a  wilderness; 
but  that  it  was  so  may  be  easily  gathered  by  a  reference 
to  Pepys,  who,  in  the  diary  of  his  journey  to  Bristol  and 
back,  makes  frequent  mention  of  guides,  and  finds  them  far 
Irom  unnecessary  or  inexpensive. 

servants  of  the  olden  time  do  not  improve  upon 


rord      I 


loo  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 

acquaintance,  as  the  following  specimen  advertisement 
the  Mercurius  Poliiicus  of  July  1658  will  show  : — 

IF  any  one  can  give  notice  of  one  EJtvani  Perry^  being  al^out  the  age 
of  eighteen  or  nineteen  )*ears,  of  low  stature,  black  hair,  full  of 
pock-holes  in  his  face  ;  he  wcarcth  a  new  gray  suit  trimmecl  with  green 
and  otlicr  ribbons,  a  light  Cinnamon- colored  cloak,  and  black  hat,  who 
run  away  lately  from  hts  Master ;  they  are  desired  to  bring  or  sen<l  word 
to  Tho.  Firb)\  Stationer,  at  Gray's  Inne  gate,  who  will  thaokfi 
reward  theni. 

This  pay  and  dashing  youth,  whose  pock-holes  were  possi- 
bly in  those  days  regarded  as  but  beauty-spots,  with  the 
additional  recommendation  of  showing  that  their  wearer 
had  passed  through  the  then  dreaded  and  terrible  onleal, 
was  doubtless  an  idle  apprentice  travelling  in  the  direction 
since  made  famous  by  one  who  served  hi«  full  indentures. 
Ugly  as  the  young  gentleman  just  described  may  seem  to^ 
the  hypercritical  tastes  of  the  nineteenth  century,  he,  as  wi^| 
will  presently  show,  is  a  perfect  beauty  compared  with  any^ 
individual  specimen  picked  out  at  random  from  the  long 
lists    of  criminals   published   in    old  newspapers.      From 
these  lists  some  conception  may  be  formed  of  the  ravages^ 
of  the  small-pox,  and  its  effect  upon  the  appearance  of  Ch^B 
great  bulk  of  the  population.    Every  man  and  woman  seeras^ 
to  have   been  more  or  less  marked — some  slightly,  some 
frightfully  pitted   or  fretted,    as  the  term   then  was ;    yet 
even   now   we   have   every  day  instances   of  violent  and 
ignorant  opposition  to  vaccination,   an  opposition  which 
is  loud-mouthed  and   possessed  of  considerable  influence 
over  the  lower  orders,  who  arc  led  to  believe  that  vaccina- 
tion is  the  primary  cause  of  all  epidemic  disease,  including 
that  which  it  most  professes  to  prevent.  1 

About  this  time  highwaymen,  who  during  the  wars  wer^H 
almost  unknown, began  toexhibit  a  strong  interestin  the  port-^* 
able  property  of  travellers ;  and  as  they  took  horses  when- 
ever they  could  find  them,  notices  of  lost,  stolen,  or  strayec 
animals  became  frequent.  It  is  much  to  be  feared  that  th< 
dashing  knight  of  the  road,  who  robbed  the  rich  to  give 


] 


DEVELOPMENT  Of  AtH'ERTi^lSG.  loi 

the  poor,  is  a  complete  myth,  and  that  the  fHicvcs  who  in- 
fested the  highway  were  neitlier  brave  nor  hamisoa.e,  and 
not  above  picking  up,  and  keeping,  the  most  triflulg  tWpgs 
that  came  in  their  way.     The  quality  of  these  ritlcrs.ifi[p)t' 
be  guessed  by  means  of  the  following,  from  the  Mercurius* 
Po/itiius  of  February  1659,  the  subject  of  which,  singularly  ' 
^^diBferent  from  the  ''prancing  prads"  of  which  enthusiasts 
^^kive  written,    seems   to  have  been  boaowed  by  one  of      ■ 

■    ~  I 

1^^*  A    Small  black  NAG,  some  ten  or  eleven  years  old,  no  while  at  nil,        H 
•**-     bob-Tailctl,  wcl  forchatidetl,  somewhat  ihin  behind,  thick  ITcels,         H 
tad  goclh  crickling  and  lamish  behind  at  his  first  going  out ;  the  hair  is        ™ 
beat  off  upon  his  far  Hip  as  broad  as  a  twclvepeiice  ;  lie  halb  a  black 
leather  Saddle  trimmed  with  blew,  and  covered  witli  a  black  Calve^-skin, 
its  a  Utile  torn  upon  the  Pummel ;  two  new  Cirtha  of  white  and  green 
llucad.  and  black  Bridle,  the  Rein  whereof  is  sowed  on  the  off  side, 
and  a  knot  to  draw  it  on  the  near  side,  Stoln  out  of  a  field  at  Chiims' 
fartlt  31  /"rfrwury  instant,  from  Mr  Henry  BulUn.     Whosoever  can 
bring  itdlngs  to  the  said  Mr  BulUn^  at  Bromfiild,  or  to  Mr  Nevaman 
at  the  Grocer's  Arms  in  Cornhil^  shall  have  20s.  for  his  pains. 

It  is  supposed  by  some  that  the  great  amount  of  horse- 
stealing which  prevailed  during  the  Commonwealth,  and  for 
tiie  next  fifty  years,  was  caused  by  an  inordinate  scarcity 
of  animals  consequent  upon  casualties  in  the  battle-field. 
This  can  hardly  be  correct,  unless,  indeed,  the  object  of 
the  foe  was  always  to  kill  horses  and  capture  men,  a  state 
of  things  hardly  possible  enough  for  the  most  determined 
theorist.  One  fact  is  noticeable,  and  seems  to  have  been 
quite  in  the  interest  of  the  thieves — namely,  that  when  at 
grass  most  horses  were  kept  ready  saddled.  This  practice 
may  have  arisen  during  the  Civil  Wars  from  frequent  emcr- 
^^bency,  a  ready-saddled  horse  being  of  even  greater  compara- 
^^Kvc  value  than  the  traditional  bird  in  tlie  hand  \  and  we  all 
^^Know  how  hard  it  is  to  depart  from  custom  which  has  been 
^^nce  establist\ed.  That  the  good  man  was  merciful  to  his 
l^ll^st  in  those  days  hardly  appears  probable,  if  we  are  to 
[J     lake  the  small  black  nag  as  evidence.     His  furniture,  too, 


I 


103 


///srd/?  y  OF  ad  ver  vising. 


seems  TnucV»mote  adapted  for  service  than  show,  despi 
its  variety  of 'colours  J  and  perhaps  the  animal  may  ha 
l^etrr  seii?ed,  as  was  not  uncommon,  by  some  messenger 
.  *6t;Ufc  making  the  best  of  his  wayfrom  one  part  of  the  kin 
?fom  to  another.  Before  the  year  1636  there  was  no  su 
thing  as  a  postal  scr\'ice  for  the  use  of  the  people.  T 
Court  had,  it  is  true,  an  establishment  for  the  forwarding 
of  despatches,  and  in  Cromwell's  time  much  attention 
was  paid  to  it;  but  it  was,  after  all,  often  in  not  much  better 
form  than  when  Bryan  Tukc  wrote  as  follows  during  the  six- 
teenth century  :  *'  The  Kinges  Grace  hath  no  mor  ordinary 
postes,  ne  of  many  days  hatlie  had,  but  betweene  London 
and  Calais.  .  ,  .  For,  sir,  ye  knowe  well  that,  except  th 
hackney-horses  betweene  Gravcsendc  and  Dovour,  there 
no  suche  usual  conveyance  in  post  for  men  in  this  realme, 
as  in  the  accustomed  places  of  France  and  other  partes  ;  ne 
men  can  keepe  horses  in  redynes  withoute  som  way  to 
bere  the  charges ;  but  when  placardcs  be  sent  for  suche 
cause  [to  order  the  immediate  forwarding  of  some  Stat 
packet],  the  cotistabUs  many  iymes  bejayne  to  take  horses  oh 
of  pioues  and  cartesj  wherein  can  be  no  extreme  dUi^ence.^  In 
Elizabeth's  reign  a  horse-post  was  established  on  each  of  the 
great  roads  for  the  transmission  of  the  letters  for  the  Court; 
but  the  Civil  Wars  considerably  interfered  with  this,  an<|H 
though  in  the  time  of  Cromwell  public  posts  and  con-^^ 
veyanccs  were  arranged,  matters  were  in  a  generally  loose 
state  after  his  death,  and  during  the  reign  of  his  sovereign 
majesty  Charles  II.  Truly  travelling  was  then  a  venture- 
some matter.  ^^ 

^_^  In  1659,  also,  wc  come  upon  an  advertisement  having™ 

^H        reference  to  a  work  of  the  great  blind  bard  John  Milton. 

^^        It  appears  in  the  Mercurius  Poiitiais  of  September,  and  is 

I  as  follows :— 


/CONSIDERATIONS  toudiing  the  likeliest  means  to  remove  Ilire- 
^— '  lings  out  of  ihc  Church  ;  wherein  is  also  dUcours'd  of  Tithes, 
Church    Fees.  Church    Kcvenues,   and  whether  any  maintenance  of 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  ADVERTISING.  loj' 

inislen  can  be  «ttled  by  Law.     The  author,  J.  M.     Sold  by  Livrwd 
z/UKdjff,  al  the  Crown  in  l'oi»e*s  Head  Alley. 

Here  we  are,  then,  brought  as  it  were  face  to  face  with  one 
of  the  brightest  names  in  the  brightest  list  of  England's 
poets.  This  work  is  almost  swanopcd  amid  a  host  of  quaintly 
and  someUmes  fiercely  titled  controversial  works,  with  which 
the  press  at  that  time  teemed.  The  poet  seems  to  have 
known  what  was  impending,  and  to  have  conscientiously 
put  forth  his  protest.  We  can  guess  what  weight  it  had 
with  the  hungering  crowds  anxiously  awaiting  the  coming 
change,  and  ready  to  be  or  do  anything  so  long  as  place 
was  provided  for  them.  In  something  like  contrast  with 
the  foregoing  is  this  we  now  select  from  a  number  of  the 
same  paper  in  December  of  the  same  year : — 

Getfrge  Weale^  a  Comiskh  youth,  about  l8  or  19  years  of  age, 
senring  as  an  Apprentice  at  Khigstcn,  with  one  Mr  Weafe^  an 
Apothccaiy,  and  his  Uncle,  about  the  time  of  the  rising  of  the  Counties 
Kent  and  Surrty^  went  secretly  from  his  said  Uncle,  and  is  conceived 
to  bavc  engaged  in  the  same,  and  to  W  either  deud  or  slain  in  some  of 
those  fights,  having  never  iince  been  heard  of,  either  by  his  snid  Uncle 
or  any  of  his  Friends.  If  any  person  can  give  notice  of  the  certainty 
of  ihc  death  of  the  said  Gtorgr  tf-'^a/r,  let  liira  repair  to  the  said  A/r 
Grauni  his  House  in  Drum-alley  in  Drury  L&ne,  London;  he  shall 
hare  twenty  bhiltings  fur  lus  pain&. 

This  speaks  volumes  for  the  peculiarities  of  the  times. 
Nowadays,  in  the  event  of  war,  anxious  relatives  are  soon 
put  out  of  their  snspense  by  means  of  careful  bulletins  and 
regular  returns  of  killed  and  wounded ;  but  who  can  tcU 
the  amount  of  heart-sickness  and  hope  deferred  engendered 
by  the  "  troubles  "  of  the  seventeenth  century,  or  of  anxious 
thought  turned  towards  corjjses  mouldering  far  away,  among 
whom  was  most  likely  George  Weale,  perhaps  the  only  one 
of  the  obscure  men  slain  in  '*  some  of  those  fights,"  whose 
name  has  been  rescued  from  oblivion. 

In  1660  we  find  Milton  again  in  the  hands  of  his  pub- 
lisher, just  at  the  time  when  the  Restoration  was  considered 
complete,  alone  amid  the  pack  that  were  ready  to  fall  down 


104 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


before  the  young  King,  who  was  to  do  so  much  to  prove  th 
value  of  monarchy  as  compared  with  the  Commonwealth. 
"  The  advertisements,"  says  a  writer,  referring  lo  this  period, 
"which  appeared  during  the  lime  that  Monk  was  tern 
porising  and  sounding  his  way  to  the  Restoration,  form 
capital  barometer  of  the  stale  of  feeling  among  politic 
men  at  that  critical  juncture.  We  see  no  more  of  the  old 
Fifih-Monarchy  spirit  abroad.  Ministers  of  the  steeple- 
houses  evidently  see  the  storm  coming,  and  cease  their 
long-winded  warnings  to  a  backsliding  generation.  Every 
one  is  either  panting  to  take  advantage  of  the  first  sunshine 
of  royal  favour,  or  to  deprecate  its  wrath,  the  coming 
shadow  of  which  is  clearly  seen.  Meetings  are  advertised 
of  those  persons  who  have  purchased  sequestered  estates, 
in  order  that  they  may  address  the  King  to  secure  them  ia 
possession  ;  Parliamentary  aldermen  repudiate  by  the  same 
means  charges  in  the  papers  that  their  names  are  to  be 
found  in  the  list  of  those  persons  who  *sat  upon  the  tr>-al 
of  the  late  Kingj'  the  works  of  Mate'  bishops  begin  again 
to  air  themselves  in  the  Episcopal  wind  that  is  clearly 
setting  in  ;  and  'The  Tears,  Sighs,  Complaints,  and  Prayers 
of  the  Church  of  England'  appear  in  the  advertising 
columns,  in  place  of  the  sonorous  titles  of  sturdy  old 
Baxter's  works.  It  is  clear  there  is  a  great  commotion  at 
hand  ;  the  leaves  are  rustling,  and  the  dust  is  moving." 
In  the  midst  of  this,  however,  there  was  one  still  faithful 
the  **  old  cause,"  as  Commonwealth  matters  had  got  to  b 
called  by  the  Puritans ;  and  on  the  8th  of  March,  just  whe 
the  shadow  of  the  scei)tre  was  once  again  thrown  upo 
Great  Britain,  we  find  the  following  in  the  Mcrcurius  Poh 
ticus ; — 

'T^HE  ready  and  easie  way  to  eslabti&h  a  free  CommonwcaJlli,  ar 
^      the  excellence  thereof  compnrcd  with  ihc  inconveniences 
dangers  of  leadmutiiij^  Kinship  in  this  Nation.     The  Author,  J. 
Wherein,  by  reason  of  ihc  Printer's  haite,  the  Errata  not  comiD); 
time,  it  hi  dcsirec!  that  the  following  faults  may  be  amended.     Po^  9*' 
Hoc  32,  for  the  Areo/nipu  read  0/  Anv/ii^s.     P.  10,  1.  3,  tor  /uU 


1 

1. 

i 


I 


Mwi^. 


1. 


it  '^^eddy  Account: 

Cootainingy  V 

^m  Special  and  Remarkable  Pafsagcs 

En  both  Houfcs of  Parliament;  And    . 
Cgllcdionsof  fevrrall  Lctrcnfrom  the  I 

Annies.  ^ 

nmtt  h  Licenfed,  and  Intrcd  imo  rk  Repftcr-Book  of  Uic 
f^ny  of  StM$40Mtni  And  Printed  by  Bernard  Aisop^ 


Wfd'^tfJ^  the  6.orjan.to^#i/M«yS^the  i  ^.orjjmvAry.i^, 


*^£  J>>t£ -5 1>^7' January  15.  n 

He  CommUTioDeis  appointed  by 
the'^Parllaincnt  co  go  to  the 
North,  and  receive  the  Kiog^ 
Pcrfon,  ami  then  conduct  him 
to  Holmsby  houfe^ave  theft 
Tht  Etarh  •fF9mhr$kg. 

Sir  Ubn  Cotki 

Sir  lamc$  Hsrfiitgtot^, 

oMmrftm,   vtTi.  ^^'  Aimihai.aniMr.a^L    eo  with 
(rnmiflioners. 
[Commifiioncrs  lo  ihe  Scots  A««ny«ttbt^AxV  ri^^WxtSssA.^ 

^ I 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  ADVERTISING. 


105 


S«rure,  trut  Senate;  L  4,  for  fits,  is  the  whole  Aristocracy  ;  \.  7, 
for  Provincial  States,  States  of  every  City.  P.  17,  I.  29,  for  ciu^ 
citie;  I.  30,  for  left,  fiU.  Sold  by  Lh/ewtl  Chapman,  at  the  Crown, 
tu  PopcVhead  Alley. 

WI10  would  think,  while  reading  these  calm  corrections, 
that  the  poel  knew  he  was  in  imminent  danger,  and  that 
in  a  couple  of  months  he  was  to  be  a  proscribed  fugitive, 
hiding  in  the  purlieus  of  Westminster  from  Royalty's  myr- 
midons? Yet  it  was  so,  and  the  degradation  to  which 
literature  may  be  submitted  is  proved  by  the  fact  that  within 
the  same  space  of  time  his  works  were,  in  accordance  with 
an  order  of  the  House  of  Commons,  burned  by  the  hang- 
man. 

The  excessive  loyalty  exhibited  about  this  time  by  the 
lawj'crs,  M^ho  were  then,  as  now,  quite  able  to  look  after 
their  own  interests,  shows  in  rather  a  ludicrous  light,  viewed 
through  the  zealous  officiousness  of  Mr  Nicholas  Bacon,  who 
must  have  been  the  fountspring  of  the  following  effusion, 
which  appears  in  a  June,  1660,  number  of  the  Mercurius 
Posticus : — 

X^ITHEREAS  one  Capt.  t7^w^,  0  witness  examined  a^^inst  the  late 
'  '  King's  Majesty,  in  those  Records  stilcd  himself  of  the  ilonor- 
ftVjle  Society  of  Grayt  Inne,  These  are  to  give  notice  that  the  said 
Cfin^e,  being  long  sought  for,  was  providentially  <liscovcrcd  in  a  tlis- 
ise,  seized  in  that  Society,  and  now  in  custody,  being  cpprchendcd 
the  help  of  some  spectators  that  knew  him,  viewing  of  a  banner 
with  His  Majesties  arms,  set  up  just  at  the  same  time  of  His  Majesties 
landing,  on  an  high  tower  in  the  same  Society,  by  A^'icAo/as  ^ncon, 
Esq.,  a  member  thereof,  as  a  memorial  of  so  great  a  deliverance,  and 
testimony  of  his  constant  loyalty  to  lits  Majesty,  and  that  the  said 
(TM^r  upon  examination  confa^ed,  That  he  was  never  admitted  not  so 
much  as  a  Clerk  of  that  Society. 

The  King  does  not  seem  to  have  enjoyed  his  own  very 
long  before  he  was  subjected  to  loss  by  the  dog-stealers, 
who,  less  ready  to  revere  royalty  than  the  lawyers,  led  to 
the  publication  of  the  following  in  the  Mercurius  Fubiicus 
of  June  28,  1660; — 


loG 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTJSjNG, 


£rp^^  A  Smooth  BL-ick  DOG.  less  than  a  Grey-hound,  with  white  und< 
^^'^    his  breast,  belonging  to  Ihe  Kings  Majesty,  was  taken  from  VVhiK 
hall,  the  eighteenth  day  of  this  instant  y*'//,  or  thcreahouti.     If  am 
one  can  give  notice  to  John  Ellis^  one  of  his  Majesties  servants*  or 
hid  Majesties  Back>Stairs,  shall  be  well  rewarded  for  their  labour. 

And  one  who  could  very  probably  afford  to  be  despoiled 
still  less — one  of  the  poor  Cavaliers  who  expected  so  much 
frotu  the  representative  of  Divine  right,  and  who  were  to  be 
so  terribly  disappointed — is  also  victimised,  his  whole  stock 
of  bag  and  baggage  being  annexed  by  some  of  those  vaga- 
bonds who  only  see  in  any  public  excitement  a  means  to 
their  own  enrichment  at  the  expense  of  others.  Fancy  the 
stale  of  mind  of  the  elderly  gentleman  who  is  so  anxious  to 
present  himself  at  Court,  while  waiting  the  return  of  the^ 
articles  thus  advertised  in  the  Mercurius  PubUcus  of  Jul/H 
5,  1660  : —  " 

A  LEATHERN  Portinantle  lost  at  Sittingbuni  or  Rochester^ 
■**■  when  his  Majesty  came  thitlier,  wherein  was  a  suit  of  Camolet 
Holland,  with  two  little  laces  in  a  seam,  eight  pair  of  white  Gloves,  and  << 
a  pair  of  Does  leallier ;  about  twenty  yards  of  skic-coloard  Ribbon 
twelvepenny  broad,  and  a  whole  piece  of  black  Ribbon  tenpenny  broad, 
a  cloath  lead-coloured  cloak,  with  store  of  linnen  ;  a  pair  of  shooes, 
slippers,  a  Montero,  and  other  things ;  all  which  belong  to  a  gentle- 
man (a  near  sen-ant  to  Ilis  Maje.it)')  who  hath  been  too  long  im- 
prisoned and  sequestered  to  be  now  robbed,  when  all  men  hope  lo 
enjoy  their  own.  If  any  can  give  notice,  they  may  leave  word  with 
Mr  .SizmN^/ ^//rrj^,  His  Majesties  Book-binder,  at  liis  house  in  Little 
Britain,  and  they  shall  be  ihankRilIy  rewarded. 

This  Merairius  Ptiblkus  from  wliich  we  have  just  quoted 
is  said  to  be  the  PoIUicus  we  have  mentioned  in  reference 
lo  earlier  advertisements,  which  turned  courtier  in  imitation 
of  the  general  example,  and  changed  its  name  also  in  emu- 
lation of  popular  practice.  All  England  seemed  then  to 
have  gone  mad  with  excessive  loyalty,  and  it  is  no  wonder 
that  Charles  was  surprised  that  he  could  have  been  per- 
suaded to  stop  away  so  long.  The  columns  of  the  Mcr- 
curius  Pubiiats  were  placed  entirely  under  the  direction  of 
the  King,  and  instead  of  the  slashing  articles  against  mall 


» 


DBVELOPMENT  OF  ADVERTISING. 


107 


tjants,  which  were  wont  to  appear  before  its  change  of  title, 
it  contains,  under  Restoration  dates,  virulent  attacks  upon 
the  Puritans,  and  inquiries  after  his  Majesty's  favourite 
dogs,  which  had  a  curious  knack  of  beconiing  stolen  or  lost 
In  addition  to  the  canine  advertisement  already  given,  we 
take  t]ie  following,  wliich  appears  during  July,  and  which 
would  seem  to  lia.ve  been  dictated,  if  not  actually  wriucn, 
by  Charles : — 

We  inuat  call  upon  you  again  for  a  Black  Dog,  between  a  Grey- 
ound  and  a  Spaniel,  no  wliite  about  him,  onely  a  streak  on  his 
Brest,  and  Tay!  a  little  t>uhbed.  It  is  His  Majesties  own  Dog,  and 
doubtless  was  stoln,  for  the  Dog  was  not  bom  nor  bred  in  England^  and 
woald  never  foisake  his  Master.  Whosoever  Andes  him  may  acquaint 
any  at  ^Vhilchal,  for  the  Dog  was  lietter  known  at  Court  than  those  w!io 
stole  him.  Will  they  never  leave  robbing  His  Majesty?  must  he  not 
keep  a  Dog?  This  Dogs  place  (though  better  than  some  imagine)  is 
the  only  place  which  nobody  offers  to  beg. 

This  is  evidently  the  dog  advertised  before,  and  seems  to 
have  been  an  especial  favourite  with  the  merry  monarch, 
who,  one  might  think,  would  have  had  so  many  dogs  that 
he  could  not  possibly  have  missed  an  individual  from 
their  number.  Pepys  about  this  lime  describes  the  King, 
with  a  train  of  spaniels  and  other  dogs  at  his  heels,  lounging 
along  and  feeding  the  water-fowl  in  the  Park  ;  and  on  later 
occasions  he  was  often  seen  talking  to  his  favourite  Nell 
Cwyn  as  she  leaned  from  her  garden  wall  in  Pall  Mall, 
^  whilst  his  four-footed  favourites  were  grouped  about.  It 
^^Kas  possibly  on  these  occasions  that  the  gentlemen  who 
^^■tve  such  an  extraordinary  faculty  for  ''finding"  dogs,  even 
^^Bto  this  day,  saw  their  opportunities,  and  marched  off 
^^nth  the  choicest  specimens.  Certainly  the  dogs  were 
being  constantly  lost,  and  just  as  constantly  advertised.* 
In  turn  we  find  him  inquiring  after  "a  little  brindled  grey- 
lound  bitch,  having  her  two  hinder  feet  white;"  for  a 
^hite-haired  spaniel,  smooth-coated,  with  large  red  or 
illowish  spots ;''  and  for  a  "  black  mastifl  dog,  with  cropped 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


ears  and  cut  tai!."  So  it  would  seem  that,  fond  as  his  Majesty 
wasofdogs.hewasnotabove  theirbeingcropped  and  trimmed 
in  the  manner  which  has  of  late  years  caused  all  the  forces 
of  a  well-known  society  to  be  arrayed  against  the  ** fancy" 
and  the  "finders."  And  not  alone  did  the  King  advertise 
his  lost  favourites.  As  the  fashion  was  set,  so  it  was  fol- 
lowed, and  the  dogmen's  lives  must  then  have  been  cast  in 
pleasant  places  indeed,  for  Prince  Rupert,  "my  lord  Albe- 
marle," the  Duke  of  Buckingham,  and  many  other  potent 
seigniors,  arc  constantly  inquiring  after  strayed  or  stolen 
animals.  The  change  in  the  general  habits  of  the  time  is 
very  clearly  shown  by  these  advertisements.  The  Puritans 
did  not  like  sporting  animals  of  any  kind,  and  it  has  been 
said  that  no  dog  would  have  followed  a  Fifth-Monarchy 
man.  Perhaps  this  dislike  accounts  for  the  total  absence 
of  all  advertisements  having  reference  to  field-sports,  or  to 
animals  connected  therewith,  until  the  return  of  the  Court 
to  England.  With  its  return  came  in  once  more  an  aristo- 
cratic amusement  which  had  faded  out  during  the  stem 
days  of  the  Commonwealth,  hawking,  and  we  are  reminded 
of  this  by  the  following  advertisement  for  a  lost  lanner,  which 
appears  in  the  Mercurius  Publicus  of  September  6,  1660 : 


Richard  Finney,  Esqutnr,  of  Alaxton,  in  Leicestershire,  about  ft 
.  fortnight  since,  lost  a  Lanner  from  that  place ;  she  hath  neither 
Bells  nor  Varvels ;  she  i*  a  while  Hawk,  anil  her  long  feathers  and 
sarcels  arc  both  in  the  blood.  If  any  one  can  give  tidings  thereof  to 
Mr  Laml;)crl  at  the  Golden  Key  in  Fleet-street,  they  shall  have  forty 
khiliings  for  ihcir  pains. 

If  it  be  true  that  the  Mercurius  changed  its  name  from 
Poiiticm  to  Publicus  out  of  compliment  to  the  new  King  and 
his  Court,  second  thoughts  seem  to  have  been  taken,  and 
'the  original  name  resumed,  for  there  is  a  Mirairius  Politi£Us\ 
in  November  1660,  from  which  is  the  following  : — 

/~^entUnuu,  you  are  desired  to  take  notice.  That  Mr  Thtophilnx 
^^  BuckiiMrth  doth  at  his  house  on  MUt'eHd  Green  make  and' 
expose  to  sale,  for  the    publick  gcjod,  those  so    famous  Lounges  or< 


ed_ 

chfl 

I 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  ADV'ERTlSiiVG, 


^'als^  approred  for  the  aire  of  Consumption,  Coughs,  Catarrhs, 
oas.  Hoarseness^  Strongness  of  Breath,  Colds  in  general,  Diseases 
»..^»wtit  to  the  Lungs,  and  a  soyoraign  Antidote  .Tgainst  ihc  Plague,  and 
all  other  contagious  Diseases,  and  obstructions  of  the  Stomach  ;  Ami  for 
more  convenience  of  the  people,  constantly  Jeavelh  them  sealed  up 
with  his  coat  of  arms  on  the  papers,  with  Mr  Ki<h.  LmvmUs  {as  for- 
^^^erly),  at  the  tign  of  ibc  White  Lion,  near  tlie  little  nonh  door  of 
^^^in//   Church  ;  Mr  Henry  SeiU^  over  against  S,  Dunstaii's  Church  in 
^^leet  Street;  Mr  WiHiam  Mihmrd^  at  H'rt/wi«j/<*r  Hall  Gale ;  Mr 
^^n  Piace,  at  FurnivaU  Inn  Gate  in  Holbom  ;  and  Mr  Robert  Horn^ 
St  the  Turk's  Head  near  the  entrance  of  the  Boyal  Exdiange,  Book- 
•cllers,  and  no  others.' 

I  This  is  puLlUhed  to  prevent  the  dcsigni  of  divers  Pretenders» 

who  counterfeit  the  said  Lozenges,  to  the  dUpasagcrocnt  of 
the  said  Gentleman,  and  great  abuse  of  the  people. 
It  will  be  seen  from  this  that  quack  medicines  are  by  no 
means  modern  inventions — in  fact,  the  wonder  is,  if  our 
ancestors  look  a  tithe  of  the  articles  advertised,  that  lliere 
is  any  present  generation  at  all ;  so  numerous  and,  even 
according  to  their  own  showing,  powerful  were  the  specifics 

advertised  on  every  possible  opportunity  and  in  connection 

rith  every  possible  disease.      As,  however,  wc   shall  de- 

'Ote  special  space  to  charlatans  further  on>  we  will  here 

simply  pass  to   the  following,  which   promises  rather  too 

much  for  the  price.     This  is  also  in  the  Afcratnus  Poiificus^ 

and  appears  in  December  i66o  : — 

MOST  Excellent  and  Approved  DeHti/rices io  scour  and  cleanse  the 
TecUi,  making  them  white  as  Ivory,  preserves  from  the  Tooth- 
ft£li ;  so  that,  being  constantly  used,  the  parties  using  it  are  never 
troubled  with  the  Toothach  ;  it  fastens  the  Teeth,  sweetens  the  Ercath, 
and  preserves  the  mouth  and  gums  from  Cankers  and  Imposthumes. 
Made  hy  R^drrf  Turner,  Gentleman;  and  the  right  are  onely  to  be 
had  at  Thomas  Rookest  Stationer,  at  the  Holy  Lamb  at  the  East  end 
of  St  Pauls  Churchj  near  the  Si:hr>ol,  iu  sealed  papers,  at  12d,  the 
paper. 

The  Readtr  is  desired  to  bavare  of  cmutcr/cits. 

We  can  now  mark  the  advent  of  those  monstrous  flow- 
ig  wigs  which  were  in  fashion  fot  nearly  a  century,  and  may 
►e  fairly  assumed    to  have  made  their  appearance  about 


no  HISTOR  Y  OF  AD VER TISTNG, 

the  date  of  this  advertisement,  which  was  published  in  thi 
iVhfYj  of  February  4,  1663  : — 

AXrHEREAS  George  Grey\  a  Barber  and  Pcrrywigge-maker,  ov< 

'  *  against  the  Greykoumi  'jai^erti,  in  Bhtck  Fryers,  Lotuioti,  gtanda 
obliged  to  scxyc  sume  particular  Persons  of  eminent  Condition  and 
Quality  In  hii  way  of  Employment:  It  is  therefore  Notifyed  at  h 
desire,  that  any  one  having  long  n.axeii  hayr  to  sell  may  repayr  to  him 
Ihe  said  George  Grey,  nnd  ihcy  iliall  have  los.  the  ounce,  and  for  amy 
other  long  fine  hayr  after  the  Kate  of  5s.  or  75.  the  ounce. 


IS 

% 


dy 

i 


Pepys,  in  his  quaint  and  humorous  manner,    describes 
how  Chapman,  a  periwig-dresser,  cut  off  his  hair  to  make 
up  one  of  these  immense  coverings  for  him,  much  to  the 
trouble  of  his  scn-ants,  Jane  and  Bessy.     He  also  states  that 
"  two  pernwiggs,  one  whereof  cost  nie  £,%  and  the  other 
40s.,"  have  something  to  do  with  the  depletion  of  his  ready, 
money  on  the  30th  of  October  1663.     On  November  ant 
he  says,  "  I  heard  the  Duke  [Buckingham]  say  that  he  w; 
going   to   wear  a  perriwigg;  and  Ihey  say  the  King  alj 
will.     I  never  till  this  day  observed  that  the  King  is  miglity 
gray."    And  then  on  Lord's  day,  November  8th,  he  says, 
with  infinite  quaintness,  "  To  church,  where  I  found  that 
my  coming  in  a  perriwigg  did  not  prove  so  strange  as  I 
was  afraid  it  would,  for  I  thought  that  all  the  church  would 
presently  have  cast  their  eyes  all  upon  me."     Pepys  was,  it 
seems,  possessed  of  that  rather  unpleasant  consciousness 
which  prompts  a  man  who  wears  anything  new  or  strang^H 
for  the  first  time  to  believe  that  all  the  w*orld,  even  tha^^ 
portion  of  it  which  has  never  seen  him  before,  knows  he 
feels  anxious  and  uncomfortable  because  he  has  got  new 
clothes   on.      The  price,  ten   shillings  the  ounce,  shows 
that  there  must  have  been  an  exceptionally  heavy  demand 
for   flaxen  colour   by   the   wearers  of   the   new-fashioned^ 
wigs.     Judging  by  the  advertisements  just  quoted,  as  welj^f 
as  by  those  which  follow,  there  can  be  no  controverting  the 
statement  that  the  reign  of  Charles  II.  "was  characterised 
by  frivolous  amusements  and  by  a  love  of  dcess  and  viciow 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  ADVERTISING. 


Ill 


excitement,  in  the  midst  of  which  pestilence  stalked  like  a 
mocking  fiend,  and  the  great  conflagration  lit  up  the  mas- 
querade with  its  iurid  and  angry  glare.  Together  with  the 
emasculate  tone  of  manners,  a  disposition  to  personal 
violence  stained  the  latter  part  of  this  and  the  succeeding 
reign.  The  audacious  seizure  of  the  crown  jewels  by 
Blood;  ibe  attack  upon  the  Duke  of  Ormond  by  the  same 
desperado,  that  nobleman  having  actually  been  dragged 
from  his  coach  in  St  James's  Street  in  the  evening,  and 
carried,  bound  upim  the  saddle-bow  of  Blood's  horse,  as  far 
as  Hyde  Park  Comer,  before  he  could  be  rescued;  the  slit- 
ting of  Sir  John  Coventry's  nose  in  the  Haymarket  by  the 
King's  guard  ;  and  the  murder  of  Sir  Eilmondbury  Godfrey 
on  Primrose  Hill,  are  familiar  instances  of  the  prevalence  of 
this  lawless  spirit."  There  is  still  one  other  memorable  and 
dastardly  assault  to  note,  that  on  "  Glorious  John,"  and  we 
shall  do  so  in  due  course. 

The  London  Gazette  now  appears  upon  the  scene,  and 
this  is  noticeable,  because  of  all  the  papers  started  before, 
or  for  a  very  considerable  time  after,  this  is  the  only  one 
which  has  still  an  existence.  It  has  been  stated  by  some 
writers  to  have  first  appeared  at  Oxford  during  the  time 
the  Court  took  up  its  abode  there,  while  the  Great  Plague 
was  raging,  but  that  this  was  not  so  is  shown  by  the  follow- 
ing, which  is  extracted  from  the  London  Gitzette  of  January 
22,  1664,  nearly  twelve  months  before  the  outbreak  of 
the  Plague.  The  fact  is  that  during  the  residence  of 
the  King  and  Court  at  Oxford,  the  official  organ  changed 
its  title,  and  was  called  the  Oxford  Gazette,  to  resume  its 
original  name  as  soon  as  it  resumed  its  original  publishing 
office.* 


I 


•  The  Ztfw/tftt  £«3rf//r  was  first  published  22d  August  1642.  The 
firtt  number  of  tlic  existing  "publishcd-by-nulhority "  scries  was  im- 
printed first  at  Oxford,  where  the  Court  was  stationed  for  fear  of  tfae 
PUgiie,  on  Noveraber  7,  1665,  and  afterwards  at  London  on  February 


ii: 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERT/SmC, 


A  TRUE  representalioa  of  the  Rhonoserons  and  Elephimt,  latel 
brought  from  the  East  Indies  to  London,  drawn  aAer  the  lifiq 
and  cnriously  engraven  in  Mczzotinto,  printed  upon  a  large  shed 
paper.      Sold  by  Pierce  Tempest,  at  the  Eagle  and  Child  in  X\ 
Strand,  over  against  Somerset  House,  Water  Gale. 

The  ignorance  of  natural  history  at  this  time  seems  to 
have  been  somewliat  marvellous,  and  anything  in  the  way  of 
a  collection  of  curiosities  was  sure  to  attract  a  credulous 
multitude,  as  is  shown  by  another  notice,  published  in  the 
Ni^vs  of  a  date  close  to  that  of  the  foregoing.  The  articles 
are  rather  scanty,  to  be  sure,  but  probably  the  "  huge  thigh- 
bone of  a  giant,"  whatever  it  was  in  reality,  was  in  itself 
sufficient  to  attract,  to  say  nothing  of  the  niumray  and 
torpedo.  ^M 

AT  the  Mitre,  near  the  west  end  of  St  Faurs,  is  to  be  seen  a  rare 
'^~*-  Collection  of  Curiosilyes,  much  resorted  to  and  admired  by 
persons  of  great  learning  and  quality  ;  among  which  a  choycc  Ej;yplian 
Mummy,  with  htcroglyphtcks  ;  the  Ant-Bearc  of  Bnuil ;  a  Kemora ; 
a  Torpedo  ;  the  Huge  Thighbone  of  a  Giant ;  a  Moon  Fish  ;  a  Tropic 
Bird,  &c. 

Evidently  something  must  have  been  known  of  mummies, 
or  how  could  the  exhibitor  tell  that  his  was  a  choice  one^H 
Our  next  item  introduces  us  to  one  of  those  old  belieflH 
which  are  still  to  be  found  in  remote  parts  of  the  country. 
The  King,  like   any  mountebank  or  charlatan,  advertisei 
the  time  when  he  will  receive,  for  the  purpose  of  giving  th< 
royal  touch,  supposed  to  be  sufficient  to  cure  the  horribl 
distemper.     Surely  he  of  all  people  must  have  known  hoi 
futile  was  the  experiment  j  and  it  is  passing  strange  that  a" 
people  who  had  tried,  condemned,  and  executed  one  kinj 
like  any  common  man,  shoidd  have  put  faith  in  such 
announcement  as  that  published  in  the  Public  Inteiiigmi 
of  May  1664,  which  runs  as  foUows  : — 

VyHITEHALL,  May  14,  1C64.    His  Sacred  Majesty,  having  dc 

'  •      clared  it  to  be  Iiia  Royal  will  and  purpose  to  continue 
healing  of  his  people  for  llie  Evil  during  the  Mouth  of  May,  and  then 


7- 

I 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  ADVERTISmC. 

pTC  over  till  Michaelmas  next,  I  am  commanded  lo  give  nolicc  thereof, 
that  the  people  nuy  not  come  up  tu  Town  in  llie  Interim  aiiU  lo&e  their 
labour. 

Surely  such  men  as  Sedley  Rochester,  Buckingham,  and 
even  Charles  himself,  must  have  laughed  at  the  infatuation 
of  the  multitude  ;  for  if  ever  there  was  a  king  whose  touch 
was  less  likely  than  another's  to  cure  the  evil,  that  king  was, 
in  our  humble  opinion,  "his  Sacred  Majesty"  Charles  II. 
But  then  people  were  prepared  to  go  any  lengths  to  make 
up  for  their  shortcomings  in  the  previous  reign.  There 
was  possibly  a  political  significance  about  these  manifesta- 
tions of  royal  ability  and  clemency,  and  some  enthusi- 
asts, who  believe  devoutly  in  the  triumph  of  mind  over 
matter,  think  there  is  reason  to  believe  in  the  efficacy  of  the 
touch  in  scrofulous  affections,  and  even  believe  that  people 
did  really  recover  after  undergoing  the  process.  Dr  Tyler 
Smith,  who  has  written  on  the  subject,  boldly  states  his  belief 
that  the  emotion  felt  by  these  poor  stricken  people  who 
came  within  the  influence  of  the  King's  "Sacred  Majesty" 
acted  upon  them  as  a  powerful  tonic;  though,  as  the  King 
always  bestowed  a  gold  piece  upon  the  patient,  we  think 
that  if  good  was  derived,  it  was  derived  from  the  comfort 
procured  by  that — for  those  who  suffered  and  believed  were 
generally  in  the  lowest  and  poorest  rank  of  life — and  per- 
haps travelling  and  change  of  air  had  something  to  do  with 
it  as  well.  If  the  arguments  of  those  who  believe  in  the 
emotional  effect  are  to  be  admitted,  it  must  be  allowed  by 
parity  of  reasoning  that  where  the  touch  failed^  its  failure 
would  be  likely  to  cause  the  sufferers  to  become  rabid 
republicans,  the  Divine  right  having  refused  to  exhibit  itself. 
Maybe  these  latter  symptoms,  like  the  symptoms  of  other 
diseases,  did  not  develop  in  the  individual,  but  came  out 
in  course  of  generations,  which  may  perhaps  account  for 
the  large  amount  of  democracy  which  has  exhibited  itself 
during  the  present  century.  There  is  certainly  something 
rather  ludicrous  in  the  fact  that    the  practice  of  touching 


114 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


^ 


for  the  evil  ceased  wiih  the   death  of  Anne;  not  because 
the  people  had  become  more  enlightened,  but  because  the 
sovereigns  who  followed  her  were  supposed  to  have  lost  the 
medicinal  virtue  through  being  kings  merely  by  Act  of  Pa^H 
liamcnt,  and  not  by  Divine  right.  ^| 

The  reaction  which  set  in  from  the  strait-laced  rule  of 
the  Puritans  at  the  time  of  the  Restoration,  must  have 
reached  its  height  about  1664,  if  we  may  judge  by  the 
advertisements  then  constantly  inserted,  which  reflect  the 
love  of  pleasure  and  folly  exhibited  by  all  classes,  as  if  they 
were  anxious  to  make  up  for  previous  restrictions.  In  fact, 
the  chief  inquiries  are  after  lacowork,  or  valuables  lost 
at  masquerade  or  water  party,  announcements  of  lotteries 
at  Whitehall,  of  jewels  and  tapestry,  and  other  things  to  be 
sold.  The  following  is  a  fair  specimen  of  the  advertise-, 
ments  of  the  time,  and  appears  in  the  News  of  August 
1664: — 


TOST  on  the  27tli  July*  about  Boywcll  Yard  or  Drury  Lftne, 
-'— '  Ladyc-s  picture  set  in  goH,  and  three  Keys,  with  divers  other 
little  things  in  a  perfumed  pocket.  Whosoever  sliaJI  jjivc  notice  of 
or  brin^  tlie  said  picture  to  Mr  Cliarles  Coakine,  Goldsmith,  near 
Staples  Iiue,  Holborn,  shall  have  4  times  the  value  of  Uie  {^old  for 
payns. 


I 


"t 


There  are  also  about  this  time  all  sorts  of  quacV  and  nos- 
trum advertisements,an  "antimonialcup,"  by  means  of  which 
every  kind  of  disease  was  to  be  cured,  being  apparently  ved^J 
popular.     Sir  Keiielm  Digby,  a  learned  knighl,  who  is  sai^^ 
to  have  feasted  his  wi/e  with  capons  fattened  upon  serpents 
for  the  purpose  of  making  her  fair,  advertises  a  book  in  whic 
is   shown  a  method  of  curing  the  severest  wounds   by 
sympathetic  powder.     But   even   the   knight's   efforts  pi 
before  the  following,  which  will  go  far  to  show  the  supersl 
tious  leaven  which  still  hung  about  the  populace: — 

O  MALL  BAGGS  lo  hang  about  Child  ren\  necks  which  are  excelh 
•^  both  fur  the  praientitm  nnd  cure  of  the  Riekets,  and  to  e< 
Children  in  breeding  of  Teeth,  ore  prepared  by  Mr  Edmund  Buckwortl 


DE  VEL  OPMENT  OF  AD  VER  TISINC  1 15 

BPtl  constantl/  to  be  had  al  Mr  Philip  Clark's,  Keeper  of  the  Library 
lit  the  Fleet,  and  nowhere  else,  at  5  shillings  a  hagge. 

We  see  in  Uie  papers  of  1665  an  increased  number  of 
advertisements  for  lost  and  stolen  animals,  mostly  those 
tised  in  connection  with  sport ;  but  this  does  not  go  to 
prove  that  more  dogs,  hawks,  &c.,  were  missing,  so  much 
as  that  tlic  advantages  of  advertising  were  being  discovered 
throughout  the  country ;  and  as  London  was  the  only  place 
in  which  at  that  time  a  newspaper  was  published,  the  cry 
after  stray  favourites  ahvays  came  up  to  town.  Strange, 
indeed,  are  many  of  the  advertisements  about  sports  long 
since  passed  from  amongst  us,  and  the  very  phrases  of  which 
have  died  out  of  the  language.  It  seems  hard  to  imagine 
that  hawks  in  all  the  glory  of  scarlet  hoods  were  carried 
upon  fair  bdies'  wrists,  or  poised  themselves  when  un- 
covered to  view  their  prey,  so  late  as  the  time  of  Charles  IL, 
but  that  it  was  so,  an  advertisement  already  quoted,  as  well 
as  the  following;  shows.  It  is  taken  from  the  Jntdligettur 
of  November  6,  16G5  :— 

IOST  on  the  30  Octolier,  1665,  nn  intcrmtitM  Barbary  Tercel 
■*  Gentle,  engraven  in  Varvels,  Richard  Windwood,  of  Ditlon  Park, 
in  Ihc  county  of  Bucks,  Kaq.  I*"or  more  particular  marks — if  the  Var- 
vck  be  Uken  off — (lie  4tb  feather  in  one  of  the  wings  Imped,  and  the 
third  pounce  of  the  right  foot  broke.  If  any  one  inform  Sir  William 
Roberts,  Knight  and  Baronet  (near  Karrow-on-thc-Hill,  in  the  county  of 
AficlUIesex),  or  \fr  William  Philips,  at  the  Kind's  Head  in  Patcrnobter 
Row,  of  the  Hawk,  he  shall  be  sufficiently  rewarded. 

Inquiries  for  hawks  and  goshawks  are  by  no  means 
scarce,  and  so  we  may  imagine  that  these  implements  of 
hunting  were  hardly  so  much  to  be  depended  upon  as  those 
from  llic  workshop  of  art  and  not  of  nature,  which  are  ia 
use  in  the  present  day.  Indeed,  the  falcon  seemed  to  care 
much  less,  when  once  set  free,  for  his  keeper,  than  writers  of 
books  arc  prone  to  imagine.     The   King  was  apparently 


il6 


mSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


no  more  fortunate  than  the  rest  of  those  who  indulged 
falconry,  for  in  a  copy  of  the  London  Gaseite^  late  in  1667,, 
the  following  is  seen  : — 

A  Sore  gcr  Falcon  of  His  Majesty,  lost  the  13  of  Aus^ist,  who 
hod  one  Varvcl  of  his  Keeper,  Roger  Higs,  of  Westminster, 
Gent.  Whosoever  bath  taken  her  up  and  give  notice  Sir  Allan  Apaley, 
Master  of  His  Majesties  Hawks  at  St  James's,  shall  be  rewarded  fot] 
hia  paines.     Back-Stairs  in  Whitehall. 

Sir  Allan  Apsley  was  the  brother-in-law  of  the  celebrated 
Colonel  Hutchinson,  and  brother  of  the  devoted  wife  whose 
story  everj'body  has  read.  The  next  advertisement  we  shall 
select  is  published  in  i\\Q  London  Gaze//^  o( May  10, 16G6,  and 
has  reference  to  the  precautions  taken  to  prevent  the  spread 
of  the  Plague.  Long  before  this  all  public  notices  of  aD 
idle  and  frivolous  nature  have  ceased,  amusements  seem  to 
have  lost  their  charm,  and  it  is  evident  from  a  study  of  the 
advertisements  alone,  that  some  great  disturbing  cause  is  at 
work  among  the  good  citizens.  No  longer  docs  the  autho- 
rised gambling  under  the  roof  of  Whitehall  go  on  ;  no  more 
are  books  of  Anacreontics  published  ;  stopped  are  all  the 
assignations  but  a  short  time  back  so  frequent ;  and  no 
longer  are  inquiries  made  after  lockets  and  perfumed  bags, 
dropped  during  amorous  dalliance,  or  in  other  pursuit  of 
pleasure.  Death,  it  is  evident,  is  busy  at  work.  The 
quacks,  and  the  WTiters  of  semi-blasphemous  pamphlets, 
have  it  all  to  themselves,  and  doubtless  batten  well  in  this 
lime  of  trouble.  The  Plague  is  busy  doing  its  deadly  work, 
and  already  the  city  has  been  deserted  by  all  who  can  fly 
thence,  and  only  those  who  are  detained  by  duty,  sickness, 
poverty,  or  the  want  of  a  clean  bill  of  health,  remain.  These 
bills  or  licences  to  depart  were  only  granted  by  the  Lord 
Mayor,  and  the  greatest  influence  often  failed  to  obtain 
Ihem,  as  after  the  Plague  once  showed  strength  it  waa 
deemed  necessary  to  prevent  by  all  and  every  means  the 


I 


DEVEL0P5SENT  OF  ADVERTISING. 


>7 


spread  of  the  contagion  tliroughout  the  country.  The 
advertisement  chosen  gives  a  singular  instance  of  the 
manner  in  which  those  who  had  neglected  to  depart  early 
were  penned  within  the  walls ; — 

ATuAoias  Hurst,  an  UphoUtcrer,  over  against  the  Rose  Tavern, 
■*  ^  in  Russell-sLrcet,  Covcnt-Gardcn,  wliuse  Maid  Servant  dyed 
lately  of  Ihc  Sickness,  fled  un  Monday  last  out  of  his  house,  takingj 
with  him  several  Goods  and  Household  Stuff,  and  was  afterwards 
followed  by  one  Doctor  Gary  and  Richard  Baylc  with  hia  wife  and 
familyi  who  lodged  in  the  same  house  ;  but  Bayle  having  his  usual 
dwelling-houM  in  Waybridgc,  in  Surrey.  Whereof  we  are  commanded 
to  give  this  Public  Notice,  that  diligent  search  may  be  made  for  them, 
and  the  booses  in  which  any  of  their  persons  or  goods  shall  be  found 
may  tjc  •thut  up  by  the  next  Justice  of  the  Peace,  or  otlicr  his  Majesty's 
Officers  of  Justice,  and  notice  immediately  given  to  some  of  his  Majesty's 
Privy  CounciU,  or  to  one  of  his  Majesty's  principal  Secretaries  of  State. 


A  great  demand  seems  at  this  time  to  have  been  made 
for  an  electuary  much  advertised  as  a  certain  preventive  of 
the  Plague,  which  was  to  be  drunk  at  the  Green  Dragon, 
Cheapside,  at  sixpence  a  pint.  This  is,  however,  only  one 
among  hundreds  of  specifics  which  continued  to  be  thrust 
upon  the  public  in  the  columns  of  the  papers,  until  the  real 
deliverer  of  the  plagne-stricken  people  appeared — a  dreadful 
deliverer,  it  is  true,  but  the  only  one.  The  Great  Fire,  which 
commenced  on  the  and  of  September  1666,  and  destroyed 
thirteen  thousand  houses,  rendering  myriads  of  peoide 
homeless,  penniless,  and  forlorn,  had  its  good  side,  inas- 
much as  by  it  the  Plague  was  utterly  driven  out  of  its 
stronghold,  but  not  until  nearly  a  hundred  thousand  persons 
had  perished.  Imagine  two  such  calamities  coming  almost 
togftther;  but  the  purgation  by  fire  was  the  only  one  which 
could  fairly  be  expected  to  prove  effectual,  as  it  destroyed 
the  loathsome  charnel-houses  which  would  long  have  held 
the  taint,  and  removed  a  great  part  of  the  cause  which  led 
to  the  power  of  the  fell  epidemic.    We  have  in  the  pre- 


1 1 S  lUSTOR  y  OF  AD  VERTISIKG. 

ceding  chapter  referred  lo  the  paucity  of  advertisementsj 
which  appeared  in  reference  lo  the  new  addresses  of  those 
who  had  been  burnt  out,  and  a  writer  a  few  years  back 
makes  the  following  remark  upon  the  same  subject: 
"Singularly  enougli,  but  faint  traces  of  this  overwhelming] 
calamity,  as  it  was  considered  at  the  lime,  can  be  gathered' 
from  the  current  advertisements.  Although  the  entire  popu- 
lation of  the  city  was  rendered  houseless,  and  had  to  encamp 
in  the  surrounding  fields,  where  they  extemporised  shops 
and  streets,  not  one  hint  of  such  a  circumstance  can  be 
found  in  the  public  announcements  of  the  period.  No 
circumstance  could  afford  a  greater  proof  of  the  little  use 
made  by  the  trading  community  of  this  means  of  publicity 
in  the  time  of  Charles  II.  If  a  fire  only  a  hundredth  part 
so  destructive  were  to  occur  in  these  days,  the  columns  of 
the  press  would  immediately  be  full  of  the  new  addresses 
of  the  burnt-out  shopkeepers ;  and  those  who  were  not  even 
damaged  by  it  would  take  care  to  *  improve  llic  occasion' 
10  their  own  advantage.  We  look  in  vain  through  the  pag'es 
of  the  London  GazetU  of  this  and  the  following  year  for  one 
such  announcement  :  not  even  the  tavern-keeper  tells  U3 
the  number  of  his  booth  in  Goodman's  fields,  although 
quack  medicine  flourished  away  in  its  columns  as  usual" 
We  have  already  shown  that  one  advertisement  at  least 
was  published  in  reference  to  removal  caused  by  the  fire,' 
but  as  it  did  not  appear  till  six  or  seven  years  after- 
wards, it  is  a  solitary  exception  to  the  rule,  indeed.  In 
1667,  notifications  occurred  now  and  then  of  some  change 
in  the  site  of  a  Government  office,  caused  by  the  disturb- 
ances incident  on  the  fire,  or  of  the  intention  to  rebuild  bj 
contract  some  public  structure.  Of  these  the  following,^ 
which  appears  in  the  London  Gazette^  is  a  good  specimen 

ALL  Artificers  of  the  several  Trades  that  must  be  used  in  Rebuilding 
■^**  ihe  Royal  Excliange  may  take  noiice,  that  ihe  Committee 
ippoiuted  for  mauagcmeut  uf  that  Work  do  sit  at  the  end  of  the  k 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  ADVERTISING,  119 

pdlery  in  Gresham  CoUedge  every  Monday  in  the  forenoon,  there  and 
then  to  treat  with  such  as  are  fit  to  undertake  the  same. 

As  nothing  occurs  in  the  way  of  advertisements  worthy 
of  remark  or  collection  for  the  next  few  years,  we  will  take 
this  convenient  opportunity  of  obtaining  a  brief  breathing 
q)ace. 


CHAPTER   VII 


CONCLUSION  OF  SEVENTnENTH  CENTURY, 


■ 


Er  us  comraence  here  with  the  year   1674,   a  perio( 
when  the  rages  and  fashions,  the  plague  and  fire, 
and  the  many  things  treated  of  by  means  of  advertisemenis' 
in  the  preceding  chapter,  had  plunged  England  into  a  most 
unhappy  condition.      The  reaction    from   Puritanism  was 
great,    but   the   reaction   from   royalty   and   extravagance, 
threatened  to  be  still  greater.      Speaking  of  the  state 
affairs  about  this   lime,  a  famous  historian,  who  has  pai( 
particular  attention   to  the  Litter  part  of  the  sevenieenti 
century,  says  ;    '*  A  few  months  after  the  termination 
hostilities  on  the  Continent,  came  a  great  crisis  in  EngUs 
politics.     Towards  such  a  crisis  things  had  been  tending 
during  eighteen  years.      The  whole  stock  of  popularity^^ 
great  as  it  was,  with  wliich  the  King  had  commenced  hi^H 
administration^  had  long  been  expended.     To  loyal  enthu- 
siasm had  succeeded  profound  disaffectioa     The  public 
mind  had  now  measured  back  again  the  space  over  whicl^H 
it  had  passed  between  1640  and  1660,  and  was  once  nior^^ 
in  the  state  iu  which  it  had  been  when  the  Long  Parliament 
met.     The  prevailing  discontent  was  compounded  of  many 
feelings.     One  of  these  was  wounded  national  pride.     That 
generation  had  seen  England,  during  a  few  years,  allied  o 
equal   terms   with   France,   victorious   over   Holland   am 
Spain,  the  misiress  of  the  sea,  the  terror  of  Rome,  the  hea 
of  the  Protestant  interest.     Her  resources  had  not  dimin 
ished;  and  it  might  have  been  expected  that  she  would 


It 

i 


CO\CLUSIOI\r  OF  SEVENTEENTir  CENTURY,      121 


have  been,  at  least,  as  highly  considered  in  Europe  under 
a  legitimate  king,  strong  in  the  affection  and  willing  obe- 
dience of  his  subjects,  as  she  had  been  under  an  usurper 
whose  utmost  vigilance  and  energy  were  required  to  keep 
down  a  mutinous  people.  Vet  she  had,  In  consequence  of 
the  imbecility  and  meanness  of  her  rulers,  sunk  so  low,  that 
any  German  or  Italian  principality  which  brought  five  thou- 
sand men  into  the  field,  was  a  more  important  member  of 
the  commonwealth  of  nations.  With  the  sense  of  national 
humiliation  was  mingled  anxiety  for  civil  liberty.  Rumours, 
indistinct  indeed,  but  perhaps  the  more  alarming  by  reason 
of  their  indistinctness,  imputed  to  the  Court  a  deliberate 
design  against  all  the  constitutional  rights  of  EngUshmcn.  It 
bad  even  been  whispered  that  this  design  was  to  be  carried 
into  eflfect  by  the  intervention  of  foreign  arms.  The  thought 
of  such  intervention  made  ihc  ))lood,  even  of  the  Cavaliers, 
boil  in  their  veins.  Some  who  had  always  professed  the 
doctrine  of  non-resistance  in  its  full  extent,  were  now  heard 
to  mutter  that  there  was  one  limitation  to  that  doctrine.  If 
a  foreign  force  were  brought  over  to  coerce  the  nation,  they 
would  not  answer  for  their  own  patience.  But  neither 
national  pride  nor  anxiety  for  public  liberty  had  so  great 
an  influence  on  the  popular  mind  as  hatred  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  religion.  That  hatred  had  become  one  of  the 
ruling  passions  of  the  community,  and  was  as  strong  in  the 
ignorant  and  profane  as  in  those  who  were  Protestants  from 
conviction.  The  cruelties  of  Mary^s  reign — cruelties  which 
even  in  the  most  accurate  and  sober  narrative  excite  just 
detestation,  and  which  were  neither  accurately  nor  soberly 
related  in  the  popular  martyrologies — theconspkacies  against 
Elizabeth,  and  above  all,  the  Gunpowder  Plot,  had  left  in 
the  minds  of  the  vulgar  a  deep  and  bitter  feeling,  which  was 
kept  up  by  annual  commemorations,  prayers,  bonfires,  and 
processions.  It  should  be  added  that  those  classes  which 
were  peculiarly  distinguished  by  attachment  to  the  throne, 
the  clergy  and  tlie  landed  gentry,  had  peculiar  reasons  for 


122  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 

regarding  the  Cliurch  of  Rome  with  aversion.     The  der| 
trembled  for  their  benefices,  the  landed  gentry  for  thei 
abbeys  and  great  tithes.    While  the  memory  of  the  reign  of 
the  Saints  was  still  recent,  hatred  of  Popery  had  in  some 
degree  given  place  to  hatred  of  Puritanism  ;  but  during  the 
eighteen  years  which  had  elapsed  since  llie  Restoration,  the 
hatred  of  Purltiinism  had  abated,  and  the  hatred  of  Poperyv^ 
had  increased.  .  .  .  The  King  was  suspected  by  many  of  aqH 
leaning,  towards  Rome,     His  brother  and  heir-presumplive 
was  known  to  be  a  bigoted  Roman  Catholic.     The  first 
Duchess  of  York  had  died  a  Roman  Catholic.     James  had 
then,  in  defiance  of  the  remonstrances  of  the  House  of^ 
Commons,  taken   to  wife  the  Princess   Mary  of  Modena^^B 
another  Roman  Catholic.     If  there  should  be  sons  by  this 
marriage,  there  was  reason  to  fear  that  they  might  be  bred 
Roman  Catholics,  and  that  a  long  succession  of  princes 
hostile  to  the  established  faith  might  sit  on  thfe  English 
throne.      The  constitution  had  recently  been  violated  for 
the  pun^ose  of  protecting  the  Roman  Catholics  from  th< 
penal  laws.     The  ally  by  whom  the  policy  of  England  ha( 
during  many  years  been  chiefly  governed,  was  not  only  a 
Roman  Catholic,  but  a  persecutor  of  the  Reformed  Churchea^^ 
Under  such  circumstances,  it  is  not  strange  that  the  cona^f 
mon  people  should  have  been  inclined  to  apprehend  a  return 
of  the  times  of  her  whom  they  called  Bloody  Mar)'."    Such 
was  the  unhappy  state  of  affairs  at  this  period,  and  thougl|^| 
its  effect  is  soon  shown  in  the  advertisement  columns  of  the™ 
papers,  one  would  think  times  were  piping  and  peaceful 
indeed  to  read  the  following,  extracted  from  the  London 
Ga2€//e  o(  October  15-19,  1674: — 

IJTIIITEIIALL.,  Ottoher  1 7.— A  square  Diamond  with  his  Nlajest/i 
'^^  Arms  ui>on  it  having  been  this  clay  lost  out  of  a  seal  in  or  about 
Whitehall,  or  Si  James's  Park  or  House  ;  Any  person  tliai  shall  have 
found  the  same  is  required  to  bring  it  to  IPilUam  Chiffituh^  Esq.,  Keeper 
of  his  Majesty's  Closet,  and  he  shall  have  ten  pouxids  for  a  Kcward. 

Doubtless  this  Chiffinch,  the  degraded  being  who  liv< 


CONCJMSION  OF  SEVENTEENTff  CEirTURY.      laj 

but  to  pander  to  the  debauched  tastes  of  his  royal  and  pro- 
fligate employer^  thought  nothing  of  politics  or  of  the  signs 
of  the  times,  and  contented  hiraself  with  the  affairs  of  the 
Backstairs,  caring  little  for  Titus  "Gates,  and  less  for  his 
victims.  Some  short  time  after  the  foregoing  was  published 
(March  20-23,  '^75)»  Chiffinch  published  another  loss  ia 
the  GasetU,     This  is  it : — 

"C*LOWN  out  of  St  James's  Park,  on  Thttrsday  night  last,  a  Goose 
*•  Olid  a  Gander,  brought  from  the  river  Gamhw  in  the  East 
Indies,  on  the  Head,  Back  and  Wings  ihey  are  of  a  shining  black,  under 
Uie  Throat  about  the  Eyes  and  the  Belly  white.  They  have  Spurs  01 
the  pinions  of  the  Wings,  about  an  inch  in  length,  the  Beaks  and 
of  a  muddy  red  ;  they  aresliapcdlikea  Muscovy  Mallard,  but  larger  and 
longer  IcgEfd.  Whoever  given  notice  to  Mr  ChifTinch  at  Whitehall, 
ihall  be  well  rewarded. 

W'liether  the  prince  of  pimps  ever  had  to  give  the  reward, 
ive  are  not  in  a  position  to  state ;  we  should,  however, 
think  that  his  advertisement  attracted  little  attention,  for 
we  are  now  in  the  midst  of  the  excitement  which  led  to  the 
pretended  plots  and  troubles  that  made  every  man  suspect 
his  neighbour,  and  when  the  cry  of  Recusant  or  Papist  was 
almost  fatal  to  him  against  whom  it  was  directed.  That 
ihis  feeling  once  roused  was  not  to  be  subdued  even  in 
death,  is  shown  by  a  notice  in  the  Domestic^  Intelligence  of 
July  23,  1679:— 

TX/HEREAS  it  was  mentioned  in  the  last  "Intelligence"  that  Mr 
•  ^  Lanfjhoni  was  buried  in  the  Temple  Church,  there  was  a  nii*- 
tnke  in  it,  for  it  was  a  Loyal  Gentleman,  one  Colonel  Acton,  who  was 
at  that  time  buried  by  his  near  relation!*  there:  And  Mr  Langhom  was 
boned  that  day  in  the  Lhurcliyard  of  St  Giles-in- the- Fields,  very  near 
the  five  Jciiuits  who  were  executed  last 

John  Playford,  Gierke  to  the  Temple  Church. 

Here  is  intolerance  with  a  vengeance,  but  in  the  year 
1679  reverence  for  persons  or  things  was  conspicuously 
absent,  and  this  is  best  shown  by  the  advertisement  which 
was  issued  for  the  purpose  of  discovering  the  ruffians,  or 


124 


J/ISTOH  Y  OF  AD  VER  VISING. 


. 


their  patron,  who  committed  the  brutal  assault  upon  Jol 
Dryden.  It  appears  in  the  London  Gazette  of  Decemb* 
22,  1679: — 

AIT"  HERE  AS  John  Drydm,  Esq.,  was  on  Monday,  the  iSthinstai 

'  *  at  niiilit,  barlKiruusly  ab!»aulte<l  and  wounded,  in  Ko&e  Sli 
in  Covent  Garden,  by  divers  men  unknown  ;  if  any  person  shall  m 
discovery  of  l!ic  saiti  ufTcudcrs  to  the  said  Mr  Dryden,  or  to  any  Juslioe' 
of  the  Peace,  he  shall  not  only  receive  Fifty  Pounds,  which  is  deposited 
in  the  hands  of  Mr  Blanchard,  Goldsmith,  next  door  to  Temple  Bar, 
for  ilic  said  purpoiie,  but  if  he  be  a  principal  or  an  accessor)*  in  the  said 
fact,  his  Majesty  is  graciously  pleased  to  promise  him  his  pardon  fi 
the  same. 


] 


Notwithstanding  the  offer  of  this  money,  it  was  ncv< 
discovered  who  were  the  perjjetrators,  or  who  was  the  insti- 
gator of  this  cudgelling.  Some  fancy  its  promoter  was 
Rochester,  who  was  offended  at  some  allusions  to  him  in 
an  "  Essay  on  Satire,"  written  jointly  by  Dryden  and  Lord 
Mulgrove ;  while  others  declare  that  the  vanity  of  the  Duchess 
of  Portsmouth,  one  of  the  King's  many  mistresses,  havii 
been  offended  by  ayW/  tVesprU  of  the  poet's,  she  procure 
him  a  rough  specimen  of  her  favours.  Others,  again,  have 
suspected  Buckingham,. who  was  never  on  the  best  of  terms 
with  Dryden,  and  who  sat  for  the  portrait  dra^vn  in  Zimri 
('*  Absalom  and  Achitophel");  but  profligate  and  heartless 
libertine  as  Villiers  was,  he  was  above  such  a  ruffianly 
rejjrisal.  In  the  Domesiick  Intdli^ence  of  December  z^H 
1679,  the  assault  is  thu»  described:  "Upon  the  lyt^M 
instant  in  the  evening  Mr  Dryden  the  great  poet,  was  set 
upon  in  Rose  Street  in  Covent  Garden,  by  tliree  persons, 
who,  calling  him  rogue,  and  son  of  a  whore,  knockt  him 
down  and  dangerously  wounded  him,  but  upon  his  crymg 
out  niunher,  they  made  their  escaj^e  ;  it  is  conceived  th* 
they  had  their  pay  beforehand,  and  designed  not  to  K 
him  but  to  execute  on  him  some  Feminine,  if  not  Popk 
vengeance."  In  a  subsequent  number  of  the  same  paj 
tere  is  the  following  advertisement : — 


COA'Cl as/ox  OF  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY. 


"5 


IITHEFEAS  thiTi  has  hetn  printed  of  latt  am  AJvertisemmt  about 
''^  the  Discovery  of  these  nvho  assaultctiyix  Drydcn,  ivUk  a  proniiie  of 
p^rdm  and  reward  to  tht  Discav€rer  ;  For  his  /nrthcr  eHceuragrmmt, 
this  is  to  gwf  notuf^  that  if  the  said  Disc&vertr  shall  maiu  knawn  thi 
Ptrsan  who  incite  thimi  to  that  unlawful  action.^  not  only  the  Discovfrer 
himself,  httt  any  of  tJkaie  wha  committed  the  faet^  shall  be  freed  from 
all  manner  of  prosecution* 

As  a  seasonable  illustration  we  present  an  exact  fac- 
simile of  a  newspaper  containing  reference  to  the  attack. 
It  is  complete  as  it  appears,  being  simply  a  single  leaf 
printed  back  and  front,  and  so  the  stories  of  men  repeat- 
ing a  whole  newspaper  from  menaor)'  are  not  so  won- 
derful after  all.  This  year  (1679)  is  memorable  among 
journalists  as  being  the  first  which  saw  a  rising  press 
emancipatedi  a  fact  which  is  sufficiently  interesting  to 
be  chronicled  here,  although  our  subject  is  not  news- 
papers, but  only  the  advertisements  contained  in  them.* 

During  all  this  time  it  must  not  be  supposed  that  the 
vendors  of  quack  medicines  were  at  all  idle.  No  political 
or  religious  disturbance  was  ever  allowed  to  interfere  with 
them,  and  their  notices  appeared  as  regularly  as,  or  if  pos- 
sible more  regularly  than,  ever.  In  a  paper  we  have  not 
before  met,  the  Atcrcurius  An^Ucus^  date  March  6-10,  1679 
-So,  we  are  introduced  for  the  first  time  to  the  cordial  which 
was  destined  to  become  so  popular  among  nurses  with 
whom  neither  the  natural  milk  nor  that  of  human  kindness 
was  plentiful,  viz.,  Daffy's  Elixir  ; — 

WIfERKAS  divers  Persons  have  lately  exposed  to  sale  a  counter- 
feit drink  called  F-I.IXIR  Salutis,  the  true  drink  so  called 
being  first  published  by  Mr  Anthony  Daffy,  who  is  the  only  pcrsoa 
that  rightly  and  tnily  prepares  it,  he  having  experienced  its  virtues  for 
above  20  ycus  past,  by  God's  bles&ing  curing  multitiidcs  of  [)eopIe 


•  A  nominal  censorship  was  continuwl  till  1695,  but  the  freedom  of 
the  prc-ss  is  con-.idered  by  many  to  date  from  the  year  named  above, 
and  an  inspection  of  the  papers  themselves  would  seem  to  justify  the 
opinion. 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 

nfflictcd  with  various  distempers  thcrcwitli,  the  reccit  whereof  he  never 
communicateil  lo  any  person  livinj;  j  and  thai  these  persons  the  better* 
lo  colour  their  deceit,  have  reported  Mr  Anthony  UofTy  to  he  dcarf, 
these  are  to  certify  Tliat  the  said  Mr  Anthony  DafTy  is  still  living  and 
in  good  heahh,  at  his  house  in  Pnijcan  court  in  the  old  Eniley,  and 
that  only  there  and  at  such  places  as  he  has  appointed  in  his  printed 
Eiheets  of  hii>  Elixir's  virtues  (which  printed  sheets  are  scaled  with  his 
seal)  the  inic  Ei-ixiR  Salutis  or  choice  Cordial  Drink  of  Health 
Is  to  b«  sold.  ^ 

It  is  noticeable  that  about  this  time  people  were  never 
sure  what  year  they  were  in  until  March,  antl  often  during 
that  month;  and  this  is  not  only  so  in  the  dates  on 
ne^vspapers,  but  is  found  in  Tepys  and  other  writers  of  the 
period.  Some  journals  do  not  give  the  double  date  as 
above,  for  we  have  before  us  as  wc  write  two  copies  of  the 
Domestuk  Jnteiiigencc  ^  or^  Ncics  both  from  City  and  CoutUry^ 
"  Published  to  prevent  false  Reports,"  No.  49  being  dat 
"Tuesday,  Dccemb.  23,  1679;"  and  No.  52,  **  Frida 
January  2,  1679."  This  has  not,  as  many  people  have  i 
agrned,  anything  lo  do  with  the  difference  between  the 
New  Calendar  and  the  Old,  as  our  alteration  of  style  did 
not  take  place  till  ihc  middle  of  the  next  century.  It  must 
have  been  a  rcHc  of  the  old  Ecclesiastical  year  which  s 
affects  the  financial  budget. 

That  the  "agony  column''  of  the  present  day  isthcresut 
of  slow  and  laborious  growth  is  shown  by  an  advertisement, 
cut  from  a  Domestic  lutelUgenu  oi  March  168 1,  whicli  con- 
tains an  urgent  appeal  to  one  who  has  in  umbrage  depart 
from  home  : — 


I 

he 
lid 

ast 

ut^ 


1 


WHEREAS  a  Person  in  London  on  some  discontent  did  ear! 

on  Monday  morning  last  retire  from  his  dwelling-house  a: 
not  yet  rcluni'd,  it  is  the  earnest  request  of  several  of  his  particular 
friends,  titat  the  Faid  person  would  speedily  repair  to  some  or  one  of 
them,  that  he  thinks  must  fit  \  it  being  of  absolute  necessity,  for  reaBons 
he  docs  not  yet  know  off. 

An  advertisement  of  this  kind,  without  name  or  initi 
might  now,  like  the  celebrated  appeal  to  John  Smithy  ap 


m^tk 


COyCLCSIOiV  OF  SEfEXTEEXTU  CENTURY,      try 

itself  to  the  minds  of  so  many  who  had  left  their  families 
"  on  some  discontent,"  that  there  would  be  quite  a  stam- 
pede for  home  among  the  married  men  making  a  temporary 
sojourn  away  from  llie  domestic  hearth  and  its  attendant 
difficulties.  Many  of  them  would  perhaps  find  themselves 
as  unwelcome  as  unexpected. 

Our  next  selection  will  be  interesting  to  those  who  are 
cir.  :':s  on  the  subject  of  insurance,  which  must  have  been 
ti'.ci  icdiy  in  its  infancy  on  July  6,  1685,  the  day  on  which 
iJie  following  appeared  in  the  London  Gazette : — 

'T^HERE  having  happened  a  Fire  on  the  24th  of  the  lost  month  hy 
■'■  which  several  houses  oi  the  friendly  society  were  humeri  to  the 
v:))Qe  of  965  poun'ls,  these  are  to  give  nut  ice  to  all  jMrrsoiis  of  the  said 
Bociety  that  they  are  desired  lo  pay  at  the  office  Faulcon  Court  in 
Fleet  Street  their  several  proportions  of  their  said  loss,  which  comes  lo 
five  ahiUing*  and  one  penny  for  every  hundred  pounds  insured,  before 
the  12th  of  Auguit  next. 

Advertisements  are  so  far  anything  but  plentiful,  there 
being  rarely  more  than  two  or  three  at  most  beyond  the 
booksellers'  and  quack  notices  ;  and  although  nowadays  the 
columns  of  a  newspaper  are  supposed  to  be  unequalled  for 
affording  opportunities  for  letting  houses  and  apartments, 
the  hereunder  notice  was,  at  the  time  of  its  publication  in 
^^  London  Gazette^  August  17,  1685,  perfectly  unique  : — 


'yJIK    EARL    of    KERKELEY'S   HOUSE,   with    Garden   and 


^THW 


Stables  in  St  John's  Lone,  not  far  from  Smith  Field,  is  to  be  Let 
Sold  for  Building.      Enquire  of  Mr  Prcitwonh,  a  corn  chandler,, 
the  said  houM;,  and  you  mny  knoiv  farther. 

Any  one  who  passes  through  St  John's  Lane  now,  with 
its  squalid  tenements,  dirty  shops,  and  half-star%'cd  popula- 
tion, will  have  to  be  possessed  of  a  powerful  imagination 
indeed  to  picture  an  carl's  residence  as  ever  standing  in 
the  dingy  thoroughfare,  notwithstanding  the  neighbourhood 
has  the  advantage  of  a  beautiful  bran-new  meat-market, 
in  place  of  the  old  cattle-pens  which  formerly  stood  on  the 
opeo  space  in  front  of  Bariholoraew's  Hospital,     Yet  as 


y 


T28  niSTORV  OF  ADVERTISING. 

proof  of  the  aristocratic  raeetings  which  used  to 
St  John's  Lane,  the  Hospitallers'  Gate  still  crosses  il 
gate  which  even  after  the  days  of  chivalry  had  de| 
had  still  a  history  to  make,  not  of  bloodshed  and  vi 
certainly,  but  of  a  connection  with  the  highest  and 
description  of  literature. 

We  now  come  to  the  year  1688,  when  advertisin 
more  common  than  before,  and  when  Charles  having  ] 
away,  James  held  temporary  possession  of  the  throne, 
published  in  the  Gazette  of  March  8,  is  suggestive  1 
religious  tumult  which  would  shortly  end  in  his  downl 

CATHOLIC  LOYALTY,  CP  upon  Ihe  Subject  of  Cove 
and  Obedience,  (Iclivert'd  in  a  SERMON  before  the 
and  Queen,  in  His  Majesties  Chapel  at  Whitehall,  on  the  13  ( 
1687,  by  the  Revnd.  Father  Edward  Scaraisbroke,  i)riesl  of  the 
of  Jesus.  Published  by  His  Majesty's  Command.  Sold  by 
Trylo*^  Dear  Stationers  HoU,  London. 

just  about  this  period  dreadful  outrages  were  of 
mon  occurrence  j  men  were  knocked  down  in  the  st 
open  daylight,  robbed,  and  murdered,  and  not  a  few  1 
were  the  outcome  of  private  and  party  hatred.  Miu 
law  was  set  at  defiance,  ajid  any  small  body  of  despc 
could  do  as  they  liked  unchecked,  unless  they  hap 
to  be  providentially  opposed  by  equal  or  superior 
when  they  generally  turned  tail,  for  their  practice  was 
fight  so  much  as  to  beat  and  plunder  the  defen 
Here  is  a  notice  which  speaks  volumes  for  the  st 
affairs.  It  is  published  in  the  London  Gazette^  and 
date  March  29,  1688  : —  ^^ 

'\17"HEREAS  a  Gentleman  was,  on  the  eighteenth  at  fl^Rn 
•  "^  wounded  near  Lincoln's  Inn,  in  Chancery  I^ane,  tn  vifl 
supposed  of  the  coachman  that  Mit  him  down  :  thcic  arc 
notice  that  the  wid  coachman  thai]  come  in  and  declare  his  km 
of  the  matter  ;  if  any  other  person  shall  discover  the  said  coacl 
John  Hawlcs,  at  his  chamber  in  Lincoln's  Inn,  he  shall  have 
I  e  ward. 


CONCLUSION  OS  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY,      J29 

About  this  time  some  show  is  made  on  behalf  of  those 
Credulous  folk  who  believe  that  all  highwayraen  in  the  good 
old  times  were  brave,  dashing,  highly  educated,  and  ex- 
tretncly  handsome ;  for  we  find  several  inquiries  after  rob- 
bers who,  before  troubles  came  upon  them,  held  superior 
positions  in  society.     Here  is  one  of  the  year  1688 : — 

1X7HEREAS  Mr  HfrhfTi  J<ma^  Attomcy-at-Law  in  ihe  Town  of 
^'  Monmoulb,  well  known  by  being  several  years  togclhcr  Under- 
Shenffof  the  same  County,  hath  of  late  divers  times  robbed  the  Mail 
coming  from  that  town  to  London,  and  taken  out  divcR  letters  and  writs, 
Knd  IS  now  Dcd  from  justice,  and  supposed  to  have  sheltered  himself  in 
tome  of  the  new-raised  troops.  These  arc  to  give  notice  that  whuio* 
ever  fehalt  secure  the  said  Herbert  Jones,  so  as  to  be  committed  in 
ofiler  to  answer  these  iaid  crimes,  may  give  notice  thereof  to  Sir 
Thomas  Fowles,  goldsmith.  Temple-bar,  London,  or  to  \fr  Michael 
Bohanc,  mercer,  in  Monmouth,  ond  ailiall  have  a  guinea's  reward. 

Mr  Jones,  culpable  as  he  undoubtedly  was,  seems  to  have 
possessed  a  sense  of  honour,  and  probably  he  served  his 
friends  as  well  as  himself  by  taking  the  writs  from  the  mail. 
The  reward  offered  for  his  apprehension  is  so  paltry  in  pro- 
portion to  the  outcry  raised,  that  a  disinterested  reader,  r^., 
one  who  has  never  felt  the  smart  of  highway  robbery,  cannot 
help  hoping  that  he  got  clear  off,  or  that  at  all  events  he 
cheated  the  gallows  by  earning  a  soldier's  death  "  in  some 
of  the  new-raised  troops."  Although  Mr  Jones  was  a  gen- 
tleman thief,  and  had  gentlemanly  associates,  he  and  his 
friends  are  the  exceptions  to  the  rule ;  for  robbers  generally 
are  described  as  a  very  sad  as  well  as  a  very  ugly  lot  of 
reprobates.  Also  in  the  same  eventful  year  of  delivery  we 
find  the  following,  which  appears  in  the  London  Gazeite^  the 
subject  of  it  having  evidently  thought  to  avail  himself  of 
the  disturbances  of  the  time,  but  whether  successfully  or 
the  reverse,  does  not  appear : — 

RUN   away   from  his   master,   Captain   St   Lo,   the    aist    instant, 
■     Obdelah  Ealias  Abraham,  a  Moor,  swarthy  complexion,  short 
tuttr,  a  gold  ring  in  bU  car,  in  a  black  coat  and  blew  breeches. 

1 


t^o 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


He  look  with  him  a  blew  Turkish  watch-gown,  a  Turkish  suit 
clothing;  ihat  he  used  to  wear  abont  tou-n,  and  uvcntl  other  thii 
Whoever  brjnipt  bim  \o  Mr  Lozel's  house  in  Green  Street  shall 
oue  guinea  for  his  charges. 

Tliis  advertisement  is  suggestive  of  the  taste  in  blacl 
moors,  which  began  to  manifest  itself  about  this  lime, 
which  had  a  long  run — the  coloured  creature  who  was 
later  limes  a  negro,  but  in  these  a  Moor,  being  often 
garded  v^s  a  mere  soulless  toy,  a  companion  of  the  pug-dc 
or  an  ornament  to  be  classified  with  the  vases  and  oth< 
china  monstrosities  which  were  just  tlien  the  vogue.  TI 
next  advertisement  we  have  is  of  a  very  different  cliaracter, 
and  has  a  distinct  bearing  upon  the  political  question  of  the 
times  ;  it  also  seems  to  show  that  the  value  of  advertising 
was  beginning  to  be  still  more  understood,  and  that  wil 
the  advent  of  a  new  sovereign  the  attention  of  the  commt 
cial  classes  was  once  more  directed  so  much  to  business 
that  even  party  feeling  was  to  be  made  a  source  of  profit. 
The  extract  is  from  the  New  Observator  of  July  17,  1689: — 


/^  RANGE  CARDS,  representing  the  late  King's  reign  and  expe- 
^^  ditiun  of  the  Prince  of  Orange ;  vii.  The  Earl  of  Essex  Murthcr, 
Dr  Otcs  Whipping:,  Defacing  the  Monument,  My  LorJ  Jefcries  in  the 
West  banging  of  Protesiants,  Magdalen  College,  Trial  of  the  Bishops, 
Castle  Maine  at  Rome,  The  Popish  Midwife,  A  Jesuit  Preaching  agninst 
our  Bible,  Consecrated  Smock,  My  Lord  Chancellor  at  the  Bed'i  fc 
Birth  of  the  Prince  of  Wales,  The  Ordinare  Maashouse  pulling  do 
nud  burning  by  Captain  Tom  and  his  Mobile,  Mortar  pieces  in 
Tower,  The  Prince  of  Orange  I,.anding,  The  Jesuits  Scampering,  Father 
Peter's  Transactions,  The  fight  at  Reading,  The  Army  going  over  to  the 
Prince  of  Orange,  Tyrconncl  in  Ireland,  My  LortI  Chancellor  in  the 
Tower.  With  ninny  other  remarkable  jwivsngcs  of  the  Times.  Tl 
which  is  ad<lcd  the  efigies  of  our  Gracious  K.  William  &  Q.  M 
curiously  illustrated  and  engraven  in  hvcly  figures,  done  by  the 
formcni  of  ibe  first  Popish  Plot  Cards.  Sold  by  Donnan  Newman, 
the  publisher  and  printer  of  the  New  Observator.  ■ 


'4 

her 
the 
the 


This  ivas  a  popular  and  ratlier  practical  method  of  celcbra 
ing  the  triumph  of  the  Whigs,  and  as  Bishop  Burnet  was  the 


J 


CONCLUSION  OF  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY,      131 

editor  of  the  Nao  Ohsen-alor,  and  these  cards  were  sold  by 
his  publisher,  he  is  very  likely  to  have  had  a  hand  in  their 
promotion.  About  now  the  traffic  in  African  slaves  com- 
menced, and  these  full-blooded  blacks  gradually  displaced 
the  Moors  and  Arabs,  who  had  formerly  been  the  prevalent 
coloured  "fancy."  It  is  supposed  that  the  taste  for  these 
daik-skinned  sen'ants  was  derived  from  the  Venetians, 
whose  intercourse  with  the  traders  of  India  and  Africa 
naturally  led  to  their  introduction.  Moors  are  constantly 
being  associated  with  the  sea-girt  Republic,  both  in  litera- 
tune  and  art,  Shakespeare's  "  Moor  of  Venice  "  being  some- 
what of  an  instance  in  point ;  while  Titian  and  other 
painters  of  his  school  were  extremely  fond  of  portraying 
coloured  men  of  all  descriptions.  By  1693,  however,  the 
negro  had  not  altogether  pushed  out  the  Moor,  if  we  may 
judge  by  an  advenisemeni  dated  January  9-12,  1692-93, 
and  appearing  in  the  London  GazeiU: — 

'ynOMAS  GOOSF.BERRY,  a  blackamoor,  aged  about  24  years, 
■^      a  thin  slender  man,  middle  stature,  wears  a  periwig :  Whoever 
lmng<t  him  tn  Mr  John  Martin  at  Guildhall  CofTcchouiiC,  shall  have 
l-H-O  guineas  Reward. 

Another  advertisement,  which  appears  in  the  same  paper 
a  couple  of  years  later,  shows  that  the  owners  of  these  chat- 
tels considered  their  rights  of  property  complete,  as  they 
put  collars  round  their  necks  with  names  and  addresses,  just 
the  same  as  they  would  have  placed  on  a  dog,  or  similar  to 
that  worn  by  *'  Gurth  the  thrall  of  Cedric."  This  indiWdual 
seems  to  have  been  different  from  any  of  the  others  we 
iiave  met,  as  he  is  evidently  a  dusky  Asiatic  who  has  been 
purchased  from  his  parents  by  some  adventurous  trader, 
and  whose  thraldom  sits  heavily  upon  him.  This  is  his 
description  : — 

AliLACK  boy,  an  In.lian,  about  thirteen  years  old,  run  away  the 
8ih  instant  from  Putney,  with  a  collar  about  his  neck  with  this 
inscription:   'The  Lady  Bromfield's  black  in  Lincoln's  Inn  Field*.* 


132 


mSTORY  OF  ADVEKTJSING, 


I 


Wlioever  Ijiiiigs  him  to  Sir  Edward  Bromfield's  at  Putney  shall  bai 
guinea  reward. 

It  seems  hardly  possible  that  a  poor  little  wretch  like  t 
would  have  run  away — for  whiiher  could  he  run  with  ai 
hope  of  securing   his  freedom? — unless  he  had  been 
kindly  treated.  There  is  little  doubt — though  we  are,  ihrou 
the  medium  of  the  pictures  of  this  and  a  later  time,  in  the 
habit  of  regarding  the  dark-faced,  while-turbaned,  and  white- 
toothed  slaves  as  personifications  of  that  happiness  which  V^k 
denied  to  higher  intellects  and  fairer  fortunes — that  ofter^ 
they  were  the  victims  of  intense  cruelty,  and  now  and  then 
of  that   worst  of  all   despotisms,    the    tyranny  of  an 
natured  and  peevish  woman. 

We  now  come  upon  an  advertisement,  which  sho 
something  of  the  desire  that  was  always  felt  by  residents 
the  country  for  the  least  scintillations  of  news  j  and  ti 
concoctor  of  the  notice  seems  fully  aware  of  this  desire 
M'ell  as  possessed  of  a  plan  by  means  of  which  he  mai 
make  it  a  source  of  profit  to  himself.  It  occurs  in  a  co; 
of  the  Hying  Post  of  the  year  1694  ; — 

IF  any  Gentleman  hai  a  mind  to  ohligc  his  country  friend  or  corrc^ 
spondcnl,  with  an  account  of  Public  af^irs  he  may  have  it  for 
pence  of  J,  Saliislniry  at  the  Rising  SUn  in  Comhill,  on  a  sheet  of 
pnpT,   half  of  which  being  b<ank,  he  may  thereon  write  hU  01 
pn\  ale  business  or  the  material  uewa  of  the  day. 

By  this  means  the  newspaper  and  the  private  letter  wei 
combined,  and  it  is  easy  to  understand  t!ie  deliglit  wil 
which  a  gossiping  and  scandalising  effusion,  p)ossessed 
the  additional  advantage  of  being  written  on  this  kind  of 
paper,  was  received  at  a  lonely  country  house,  by  people 
pining  after  the  gaieties  of  metropolitan  life.     The  news- 
letter proper  was  a  very  ancient  article  of  intercommunica- 
tion, and  it  seems  strange  that  it  should  have  flourished 
long  after  the  introduction  of  newspapers,  which  it  certainly 
did.     This  may  be  accounted  for  by  the  fact,  that  during 
the  time  of  the  Rebellion  it  was  much  safer  to  write  than  to 


i 


C0XCL(/S70Ar  OF  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY.      IJ3 

print  any  news  which  was  intended  to  be  read  at  a  dis- 
tance, or  which  had  any  political  significance.  It  has  been 
remarked  that  many  of  these  newsletters  *'wcre  written  by 
strong  partisans,  and  contained  information  which  it  was 
neither  desirable  nor  safe  that  their  opponents  sliould  sec. 
They  were  passed  on  from  hand  to  hand  in  secret,  and 
often  indorsed  by  each  successive  reader.  We  are  told 
that  the  Cavaliers,  when  taken  prisoners,  have  been  known 
to  eat  their  newsletters  ;  and  some  of  Prince  Rupert's,  which 
had  been  intercepted,  are  still  in  existence,  and  bear  dark 
red  stains  which  testify  to  the  desperate  manner  in  which 
they  were  defended.  It  is  pretty  certain,  however,  that  as 
a  profession  newsletter  wTiting  began  to  decline  after  the 
Revolution,  though  we  find  the  editor  of  the  Ev€nmg  Post, 
as  late  as  the  year  1709,  reminding  its  readers  that  '  there 
must  be  three  or  four  pounds  a  year  paid  for  written 
news.'  At  the  same  time,  the  public  journals,  it  is  clear, 
had  not  performed  that  part  of  their  office  which  was 
really  more  acceptable  to  the  country  reader  than  any 
oiher — the  retailing  the  political  and  social  chit-chat  of 
the  day.  Wc  have  only  to  look  into  the  public  papers 
to  convince  ourselves  how  woefully  they  fell  short  in  a 
department  wiiich  must  have  been  the  staple  of  the  news- 
writer."  It  would  seem,  therefore,  that  this  effort  of  Mr 
Salusbury  was  io  combine  the  old  letter  with  the  modern 
paper,  and  thus  at  once  oblige  his  customers  and  save  a 
time-honoured  institution  from  passing  away.  It  would 
seem  as  if  he  succeeded,  for  there  are  in  the  British 
Museum  many  specimens  of  papers,  half  print  half  manu- 
script ;  and  as  most  of  the  written  portions  are  of  an 
extremely  treasonable  nature,  possibly  the  opportunity  to 
send  the  kind  of  news  which  suited  them  best,  and  thus 
combine  friendship  anvi  duty,  was  eagerly  seized  by  the 
Jacobites.  But  how  singular  after  all  it  seems  for  an  editor 
to  invite  his  subscribers  to  write  their  own  news  upon  their 
o«-n  newspapers  1 


134  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISIKG. 

We  are  now  getting  very  near  the  end  of  the  seventeenth 

century,  and  among  the  curious  and  quaint  advertisements 
which  attract  attention,  as  wc  pore  over  the  old  chronicles, 
which  mark  the  close  of  the  eventful  cycle  which  has  sec 
so  much  of  revolution  and  disaster,  and  of  the  worst  fon 
of  religious  and  political  fanaticisms  carried  to  their  m< 
dreadful  extremes,  is  the  following.     It  appears  in  Salm 
hury^s  F/ying Post  of  October  27,  1696,  and  gives  a  go< 
idea  of  manners  and  customs,  which  do  not  80  Gir  apj 
to  have  altered  for  the  better  : — 

"\i7nEREAS  six  gentlemen  (all  of  the  same  honouraMc  profession] 
*  *  having  been  more  than  ordinary  ]7ul  lo  it  for  a  little  pocket 
money,  did,  on  the  14th  instant,  in  the  evening  near  Kentish  tow 
borrow  of  two  persons  {in  a  coach)  n  certain  sum  of  inuncy,  with 
slaying  to  give  bond  for  the  repayment :  And  whereas  fancy  wa» 
taken  to  the  hnt,  peruke,  crarate,  aword  and  cane,  of  one  of  the  credi 
tors,  which  were  all  lent  as  freely  as  the  money:  these  are,  therefor 
to  desire  the  said  six  worthies,  how  fond  soever  ihey  may  be  of 
other  loans,  to  unfancy  the  cane  again,  and  send  it  to  Will's  Cofft 
house,  in  Scotland  yard  ;  it  being -too  short  for  any  such  proper  gen- 
tlemen as  ihcy  are,  to  walk  with,  and  too  small  for  any  of  their 
important  ilscs  and  withol^nly  valuable  as  having  been  tlie  gift  of  a 
friend. 


And  just  about  this  time  we  come  upon  some  more 
applications  from  our  old  friend  Houghton,  who  seems 
be  doing  a  tliriving  business,  and  is  as  full  of  wants  as  eve 
he  could  almost  desire.     In  a  number  of  his  CoiUethn 
the  Tmproiicmatt  of  Husbandry  and  Trade  he  expresses  a 
wisli  as  follows  : — 


ore    I 


I  want  an  gngliiihman  that  can  lolcrably  wcU  speak  F 

(if  Dutch  too  so  much  the  belter),  and  that  will  be  content  to 
home  keeping  accounts  almost  his  whole  time,  and  give  good  lecurii 
for  his  fidelity,  and  he  shall  have  a  pretty  good  salaiy. 

And  again,  his  wishes  being  evidently  for  the  perfection 
of  se^^'ants,  even  lo — which  is  rather  an  anomaly  in  domcs^ 
lie  servitude — getting  security.      Many  servants  must 


CONCLUSION  OF  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY,     135 

those  days  have  wished  to  get  security  for  the  honesty  of 
their  masters ; — 

^—^  I  want  to  wait  on  a  gentleman  in  the  City  a  young  man  that 
writes  a  pretty  good  hand,  uid  knows  how  to  go  to  market,  must  wait 
on  company  that  comes  to  the  house  and  wear  a  livcryi  has  liad  tlie 
amaU-po3t,  and  can  give  some  small  security  for  his  honesty. 

Houghton  was  noticeable  for  expressing  a  decided  opin- 
ion with  regard  to  the  quality  of  whatever  he  recommends, 
and,  as  we  have  shown,  was  not  at  all  modest  in  his  own 
desires.  Even  he,  however,  could  rarely  have  designed 
such  a  bargain  as  this  :— 

—  One  that  is  fit  to  keep  a  warehouse,  be  a  steward  or  do  any- 
thing that  can  be  supposed  an  intelligent  man  that  has  been  a  shop- 
keeper is  fit  for,  and  can  give  any  security  that  can  be  desired  as  far  as 
ten  thousand  pounds  goes,  and  has  some  estate  of  his  own,  desires  an 
employment  of  one  hundred  pounds  a  year  or  upwards.  I  cun  give 
an  account  of  him. 

This  is  the  last  we  shall  see  of  old  Houghton,  who  did 
much  good  in  his  time,  not  only  for  other  people  but  for 
himself  as  well,  and  who  may  be  fairly  regarded  as,  if  not 
the  father,  certainly  one  of  the  chief  promoters  of  early 
advertising. 

The  next  public  notice  we  find  upon  our  list  is  one  which 
directs  itself  to  all  who  may  wish  to  be  cured  of  madness, 
though  why  people  who  are  really  and  comfortably  mad 
should  wish  to  have  the  trouble  of  being  sane,  we  do  not 
profess  to  understand.  However,  it  is  not  likely  that  this 
gentleman  helped  them,  for  he  overdoes  it,  and  ofi'ers  rather 
too  much.  The  notice  appears  in  the  Post  Boy  of  January 
6-9,  1699:— 

T  N  Clerkenwcll  Close,  where  the  figure  of  Mad  People  arc  over  ilie 
■^  gale,  Liveth  one  who  by  the  Blessing  of  God,  curcth  all  Lunitck 
distracted  or  Mad  People,  he  seldom  exceeds  3  months  in  the  cure 
of  the  maddest  Person  that  comes  in  his  house,  several  hai^  lx;cn 
cured  in  a  fortnight  and  some  in  less  time ;  he  has  cured  several  from 


136 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISIKG. 


Bedlam  and  other  mad-houses  in  and  about  this  City  and  has 
veniency  for  people  of  what  quality  soever.     No  cure  no  money. 
likewixe  careth  the  dropsy  infallibly  and  has  taken  away  from  lo,  12, 
15,  20  gallons  of  water  with  a  gentle  preparation.     He  curclh  theiaj 
that  are  100  miles  off  as  well  ob  them  that  are  in  town,  and  if  any  ore] 
desirous  they  may  have  a  note  at  his  house  of  several  that  he  halli'^ 
cured. 

Notwithstanding  the  writer's  proficiency  in  the  cure  of] 
lunatics,  he  seems  to  have  been  sorely  exercised  with  regard 
to  the  spelling  of  the  word,  and  he  is  ingenious  enough  in 
other  respects.  The  remark  about  no  cure  no  pay,  it  is 
noticeable,  refers  only  lo  the  cases  of  lunacy,  and  not  to 
those  of  dropsy,  for  the  evident  reason  that  it  is  quite  pos- 
sible to  make  a  madman  believe  he  is  sane,  wliile  it  would 
be  rather  hard  to  lead  a  dropsical  person  into  the  impres- 
sion that  he  is  healthy.  Quacks  swarm  about  this  period, 
but  as  we  shall  devote  special  attention  to  them  anon, 
we  will  now  step  into  the  year  1700,  beginning  with  the 
Flying  Post  for  January  6-9,  which  contains  this,  a  notice 
of  a  regular  physician  of  the  time : — 

/VT  the  Angel  and  Crown  in  Ba&lug-Iane  near  Bow*lanc  liveth  J. 
''*■  Pcchey,  a  Graduate  in  the  University  of  Oxford,  and  of  many 
years  standing  in  the  College  of  Phyisicianii  in  London  :  where  all  sick 
people  that  come  to  him,  may  have  for  Six  pence  a  faithful  account  of 
their  diseases,  and  plain  directions  for  diet  and  other  things  they  can 
prepare  themselves.  And  such  as  have  occasion  for  Medicines  may 
have  them  of  him  at  any  reasonable  rales,  without  paying  anything  for 
advice.  And  he  will  visit  any  sick  person  in  London  or  the  Liberties 
thereof  fn  the  day  time  for  two  shillings  and  Six  pence,  and  anywhere 
else  within  the  Bills  of  Mortality  for  Five  shillingB.  And  if  he  be 
called  in  by  any  person  as  he  pa<tses  by  in  any  of  these  places,  he  wUl 
require  but  one  shilUng  for  his  advice. 

This  is  cheap  enough,  in  all  conscience,  and  yet  there  is 
little  doubt  that  the  afflicted  infinitely  preferred  the  nos- 
trums so  speciously  advertised  by  empirics  to  treatment 
according  to  the  pharmacopoeia.  "We  have  good  authority 
for  the  statement  that  faith  will  move  mountains,  and  it 


i 


COXCLl/S/OAr  OF  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY,      137 

seems,  if  we  are  to  judge  by  the  testimonials  puLlished  from 
lime  immemorial  by  vendors  of  ointment  and  pills,  10  have 
moved  mountainous  tumoure,  wens,  and  carbuncles,  for 
without  it  soft  soap,  bread,  and  bacon  fat  would  be  of  little 
use  indeed.  Glorious  John  Dryden  died  early  in  this  year, 
and  a  hoaxing  advertisement  appeared  in  the  Post  Boy  of 
May  4-7,  which  called  for  elegies,  &c. : — 

•yHE  Death  of  the  famous  John  Dryden  Esq.  Poet  Lanrcat  to  their 
*  two  Ule  Majesties,  King  Charles  unci  King  James  the  Second; 
being  a  Subject  cnpable  of  employing  the  best  pens,  aiid  several 
personi  of  quality  and  others,  having  put  a  &top  to  his  interment, 
which  is  to  be  in  Chaucer's  grave,  in  Westminster  Abbey  :  This  is  to 
desire  the  gentlemen  of  the  two  famous  universities,  and  others  who 
have  a  respect  for  the  memory  of  the  deceos'd,  and  are  inclinable  to 
such  performances,  to  send  what  copies  they  please  as  Epigrams,  etc 
to  Henry  Playford  at  his  shop  at  ilie  Temple-Change  in  Fleet  street, 
acid  they  sliall  be  inserted  in  a  Collection  which  is  dcsign'd  after  the 
GUQC  nature  and  in  tlie  same  method  (in  what  language  they  shall 
please)  as  is  usual  in  the  composures  which  are  printed  on  solemn 
occasions  at  the  two  Universities  aforesaid. 


Other  advertisements  followed  this,  and  from  them  it 
appears  that  the  shop  of  Henry  Playford  was  inundated 
with  manuscripts  of  all  lengths  and  kinds,  and  in  many 
languages.  What  became  of  them  does  not  make  itself 
known,  which  is  a  pity,  as  many  must  have  been  equal  to 
any  specimen  which  occurs  in  the  "  Rejected  Addresses," 
with  the  advantage  and  recommendation  of  being  genuine. 

It  is  strange  that  so  far  we  have  met  with  no  theatrical 
or  musical  advertisement  or  public  notice  of  any  forth- 
coming amusement,  for  it  appeared  most  probable  that 
as  soon  as  ever  advertising  became  at  all  popular  it  would 
have  been  devoted  to  the  interest  of  all  pursuits  of  plea- 
sure. In  1700,  however,  we  come  upon  what  must  be 
considered  the  really  first  advertisement  issued  from  a 
playhouse,  and,  as  a  curiosity,  reproduce  i  t  from  the 
columns  of  the  Fiying  Post  of  July  4: — 


columns  01  cne  r tying  rosi  01 


L 


138  mSTOR  Y  OF  ADVERTISING, 

yv;S«*.  AT  the  request  and  for  ihc  Entertainment  of  several  persons  1 
quality  at  the  N€xu  Theatre  in  Lincolm-InnFuids,  to  morroi 
being  Friday  the    5th   of    this   instant,  fnly,  will   be    acted 
Comical   History  of  Dott  Quixote^*'  both  parts  made  inlo  one  by 
author.    With  a  new  entry  by  the  little  boy,  being  his  last  time 
dancing  before  he  goes  to  France:  Also  Mrs.  Elfords  new  entry, 
performed  but  once  and  Miss  Evans's  jigg  and  Irish  dance ; 
itevt^ral   new  comical   dances,  composed  and   performed   by  Monstt 
/.'Sac  and  others.     Together  with  a  new  Pastoral  Dialogue,  by  Mr 
Gor^e  and  Mrs  J/ayptes,  and  variety  of  other  singing.     It  being  lor  the 
benefit  of  a  genilemon  in  great  distress,  and  for  the  relief  of  his  wife 
and  3  children. 

This  lead  was  soon  followed  by  more  important  houses, 
and  in  a  very  few  years  we  have  iists  regularly  published  of 
the  amusements  at  all  theatres.  Theatrical  managers  have 
in  all  times  been  blessed  with  a  strong  faculty  of  imitation, 
and  though  it  seems  immensely  developed  just  now,  the 
lessees  of  a  hundred  and  seventy  years  ago  were  just 
keen  to  follow  the  scent  of  anything  which  had  prov 
fortunate  on  the  venture  of  any  one  possessed  of  pluc; 
or  originality. 

We  have  reserved  for  the  end  of  this  chapter  two  adver- 
tisements of  an  individual  who,  according  to  his  own  show- 
ing, would  have  been  invaluable  to  some  of  the  members 
of  the  various  school  boards  of  the  present,  and  have 
enabled  them  to  keep  pace  with  the  pupils  under  their 
supervision,  a  consummation  devoutly  to  be  wished.  How- 
ever, if  we  cannot  have  Mr  Switterda,  some  other  f^rus  ex 
fnachirtfi  may  yet  arise.  The  first  is  from  the  Postman  of 
July  6-9,  and  runs  thus  \— 

ALL  Gentlemen  and  Ladies  who  are  desirous  in  a  very  short  lime 
l\,  to  learn  to  speak  Latin,  Frmeh  or  Ilit^h  Dutch  fluently,  and 
that  truly  and  properly  without  pedantry,  according  lo  tlmmmar  njlL-s, 
ond  can  but  spare  two  hours  a  week,  may  faiihrully  be  taught  by  Mr. 
Switterda  or  his  assistant  at  his  lodgings  in  P.iuton  S/reei,  at  the  liunch 
of  Grai)es,  near  Leicester  Fi^Us,  where  you  may  have  Latin  and  Trcncli 
historical  cards.  Children  may  come  every  day,  or  as  often  as  parent* 
please  at  bii  hotise  in  AruthM  S/ntf,  next  to  the  Temple  Passage, 


COXC/MSfON  OF  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY,      139 

cliufly  those  of  discrclion,  who  may  be  his  or  her  assistant,  enlring  at 
the  same  time.  And  if  any  Gent,  will  lake  two  children  or  hnlf  a 
doicn  of  equal  ajjc,  whose  capAcily  are  not  cli:> proportionable,  and  let 
a«y  Gent.  Lake  his  choice,  and  leave  to  the  abovenameU  S.  the  oilier, 
aad  he  is  content  to  lo^  bis  reward,  if  he  or  his  n&stsiant  makes  not  a 
greater  and  more  visible  improvement  of  the  Latin  tongue  in  the  first 
three  months  liaoe,  than  any  Gent,  whatsoever.  Et  quamquam  nobili 
Gcnnano  est  dedecori  lin^as  profitcri,  toinen  non  abscondi  talcnta 
mel  que  Deus  mihi  largims  est,  scd  ea  per  multos  annos  publicavi,  ct 
omnes  tam  divites  quam  paupores  ad  domum  meam  jiivttavi,  scd  surdos 
temper  aures 'pulsavi,  multos  mihi  invidos  conciliavi,  quos  confiJcntia 
et  ledulitate  jam  superavi.  Omnes  artes  mechanicie  qnolidic  exco- 
luotur,  artes  vero  liberales  sunt  velutt  statiia  idolatrica  qu£c  addorantur 
Qon  promovcnlur.  He  intends  to  dispose  of  two  cop[>er  plates  con- 
taining the  ground  of  the  Latin  tongue,  and  the  highest  bidder  shall 
have  them.  Every  one  is  to  pay  acconiing  to  his  quality  froni  one 
guinea  lo  4  guineas  ^r  month,  but  he  will  readier  agree  by  the  great. 

It  is  evident  that  Mr  Swlttcrda  was  of  an  accommodat- 
ing disposition,  and  doubtless  did  well  not  only  out  of  those 
who  agreed  by  the  great — a  species  of  scholastic  slang  we 
are  unable  to  understand  positively,  however  much  we  may 
surmise — but  out  of  those  who  were  content,  or  were  per- 
force compelled  to  put  up,  with  the  small.  Here  is  anotlier 
"high-falutin"*  notice  which  appears  in  the  same  paper 
about  a  month  later,  and  which  shows  that  the  advertiser  is 
also  possessed  of  a  power  of  puffing  his  own  goods  which 
must  have  aroused  the  envy  and  admiration  of  other  quacks, 
in  an  age  when  they  were  not  only  numerous  but  singu- 
larly fertile  in  expedient : — 

WHEREAS  in  this  degenerate  ag^  Yonth  are  kept  bo  many  years 
in  following  only  the  Latin  tongue  and  many  of  them  are  quite 
discouraged  Mr.  Swittnda  offers  a  very  ea*y,  short,  and  dcliglilful 
method,  which  is  full,  plain^  most  expeditious  and  effectual,  without 
pedantry,  retoWing  all  into  a  laudable  and  most  beneficial  practice  by 
which  Gent,  and  Ladies,  who  can  but  spare  lo  be  but  twice  in  a  week 
with  him,  may  in  two  year*  lime  leani  Latin^  i'remh  and  High  Duich, 
uuC  only  to  speak  them  truly  and  propcily,  but  also  lo  understand  a 
riwiiciil  luiUior.     Aniiaihencs,  aii  eminent  Teacher  being  a»k'd  why 


140 


HISTORY  OF  ADVBRTISrSG, 


he  bad  so  few  icliolars?  answer'd  Qttoniam  non  compello^  sed  Jr/ 
ilhs  itirga  argintia.  Mr.  Switlerda  who  loves  qualttatrm  nan  qttai 
taUm  may  say  ihc  same  of  a  great  many,  except  those  who  arc  scholi 
ihciflsclvcs,  and  love  to  give  their  children  extraordinary  learnii 
who  have  paid  not  only  what  he  dcsircfl,  but  one,  two,  or  thi 
j^incas  above  their  quartericl,<;c,  and  some  more  than  he  asked.  Lie: 
not  willing  to  be  troubled  with  stublwm  boys,  or  those  of  S  or  9 
of  age,  unless  they  come  along  with  one  of  more  maturity,  that  shi 
be  able  to  instruct  them  at  home,  and  such  as  may  be  serviceable 
the  public  in  l^ivinity.  Law  and  Physick,  or  teaching  school.  Th( 
is;^20  offered  for  the  two  copperplates,  and  he  that  bids  most  si 
have  them.  He  teacheth  Mondays,  Wednesday!),  and  KriJayi  at 
house  in  Arundel  Street,  next  door  above  the  Temple  Passage,  and  tt 
other  three  days  in  Paiiton  Street,  at  the  Bunch  of  Grapes  nt 
Leicester  Fields,  where  you  may  have  Latin  and  French  Hibtori< 
Cardit,  and  a  pack  to  learn  Copia  Verborum^  which  is  a  great  want 
many  gentlemen.  Every  one  is  to  pay  according  to  his  quality,  frt 
one  Guinea  to  4  Guineas  per  month.  But  poor  Gent  and  Ladies 
will  consider,  chiefly  when  they  agree  by  the  great,  or  come  to  boi 
with  hi 01. 

How  different  from  the  puffing  and  pretentious  announ< 
ments  just  given  is  the  one  of  the  same  time  which  foUoi 
as  we  read  which  we  can  hear  the  hum  of  the  little  counti 
schoolroom,  and  see  the  master  with  Jiis  wig  all  awry,  de( 
in  snuff  and  study,  the  mistress  keenly  alive  to  the  dispo! 
lion  of  her  girls,  and  the  pupils  of  both  sexes,  as  pupils  at 
often  even  nowadays,  intent  upon  anything  but  their  lessons 
or  work.     London  is  forty  miles  away,  and  the  coach  is  an 
object  of  wonder  and  admiration  to  the  villagers,  who  look 
upon  the  pupils  who  have  come  from  the  great  city  wi! 
awe  and  reverence,  while  the  master  is  supposed  to  diffi 
learning  from  every  pore  in  his  body,  and  to  scatter  knoi 
ledge  with  every  wave  of  his  hand.     The  mistress  is  ali 
an  object  of  veneration,  but  her  accomplishments  are  moi 
within  the  ken  of  rustic  folk,  and  she,  good  simple  dara< 
who  imagines  her  husband  to  be  the  most  learned  man 
all  the  King,  God  bless  him's,  dominions,  delights  to  tal 
about  the  clergj-mcn  they  have  educated,  and  has  been  th( 

incipal  cause  of  his  inditing  and  publishing  this  notice  > 


CONCLUSION  OF  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY,      141 

ApOVT  forty  miles  fn»a  I^ondon  is  a  scHoolmaAter  has  had  such 
*^  sncceas  with  boys  as  there  are  almost  forty  ministers  and  school- 
maiteni  that  were  his  sdiolara.  His  wife  also  tMches  girls  lacemaking, 
plain  work,  raising  pastes  nuccSi  and  cookery  to  a  degree  of  exactness. 
His  price  is/io  ory^ll  the  year,  with  a  pair  of  shccU  and  one  spoon, 
to  be  retnzned  if  desired ;  coaches  and  other  conveniencies  pass  every 
day  within  half  a  mite  of  the  house,  and  'tis  but  an  easy  journey  to  or 
bom  London. 

And  with  these  proofs  that  the  schoolmaster  was  very 
mach  abroad  at  the  titne,  we  will  take  leave  of  the  seven- 
teenth centuxy. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 


EARLY  PART  OF  EtGHTEENTH  CESTURY. 


IT  is  now  apparent  that  advertising  has  become 
nised  as  a  means  of  communicalion  not  only  fo 
convcniencies  of  trade,  but  for  political,  lovemaking,  ft 
tiine-himling,  swindling,  and  the  thousand  and  one  ot! 
purposes  which  are  always  ready  to  assert  themselves 
a  large  commLmiCy.    It  is  also  evident  that  as  years  ha' 
progressed,  advertising  has  become  more  and  more  nee 
sary  to  certain  trades,  the  principals  in  which  a  comp; 
lively  short  time  before  would  have  scorned  the  idea  of 
ventilating  their  wares  through  the  columns  of  the  publi 
press.     So  it  is  therefore  as  well  to  notice  the  rates  whi 
were  charged  by  some  of  the  papers.     This  was  before  th) 
duty  was  placed   upon  advertisements,  when  the  arrange- 
ment was  simply  between  one  who  wished  a  notice  inserted 
in  a  paper,  and  another  who  possessed  the  power  of  making 
such  insertion.     It  is  of  course  impossible  to  tell  what  the 
rates  were  on  all  papers,  but  as  some  had  notices  of  pric^M 
per  advertisement  stated  at  foot,  a  fair  estimate  may  b^| 
made.     The  first  adverlisemeats  were  so  few  that  no  notice 
was  called  for,  and  it  was  not  until  every  newspaper  looked 
forward  to  the  possession  of  more  or  less  that  the  plan  <^| 
stating  charges  became  common.      About  the  period  ^^ 
which  we  are  now  writing,  long  advertisements  were  un- 
known ;  they  generally  averaged  about  eight  lines  of  narrow 
measure,  and  were  paid  for  at  about  a  shilling  each,  with 
fluctuations  similar  in  degree  to  those  of  the  leading  pap< 


EARL  Y  PART  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY.         14J 

of  the  present  day.  Various  rules  obtained  upon  various 
papers.  One  journal,  the  ^^  Jockey's  Intelligencer,  or  Weekly 
Advertisements  for  Horses  and  Second-Hand  Coaches  to 
be  Bought  and  Sold,"  which  appeared  towards  the  end  of 
the  seventeenth  century,  charged  "a  shilling  for  a  horse  or 
coach  for  notification,  and  sixpence  for  renewing."  Still 
later,  the  County  Genileman^s  Courant  seems  to  have  been 
the  first  paper  to  charge  by  the  line,  and  in  one  of  its 
numbers  appears  the  following  rather  non-sequitous  state- 
ment :  "  Seeing  promotion  of  trade  is  a  matter  which  ought 
to  be  encouraged,  the  price  of  advertisements  is  advanced 
to  twopence  per  line."  Very  likely  many  agreed  with  the 
writer,  who  seems  to  have  had  a  follower  several  years  after- 
wards— a  corn  dealer,  who  during  a  great  dearth  stuck  up 
the  following  notification :  *'  On  account  of  the  great  dis- 
tress in  this  town,  the  price  of  flour  will  be  raised  one 
shilling  per  peck."  But  neither  of  these  men  meant  what 
he  said,  though  doubtless  he  thought  he  did. 

The  first  advertisement  with  which  we  open  the  century 
is  of  a  semi-religious  character,  and  betrays  a  very  inquiring 
disposition  on  the  part  of  the  writer.  Facts  of  the  kind 
required  are,  however,  too  stubborn  to  meet  with  publica- 
tion at  the  request  of  everybody,  and  if  Mr  Keith  and  other 
controversialists  had  been  trammelled  by  them,  there  is 
every  probability  that  the  inquiry  we  now  republish  would 
never  have  seen  the  light : — 

WHEREAS  the  World  has  been  told  in  public  papers  and 
otherwise  of  numerous  conversions  of  quakcrs  to  the 
Choich  of  England,  by  means  of  Mr  Keith  and  others,  and  whereas  the 
quakers  give  out  in  their  late  books  and  otherwise,  that  since  Mr 
Keith  came  out  of  America,  there  are  not  ten  persons  owned  by  them 
that  have  left  their  Society,  Mr  Keith  and  others  will  very  much 
oblige  the  world  in  publishing  a  true  list  of  their  proselytes.    • 

The  foregoing  is  from  the  Postman  of  March  1701,  and 
in  July  the  same  paper  contains  a  very  different  notice, 
which  will  give  an  idea  of  the  amusements  then  in  vogue, 


144 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


and  rescue  from  oblivion  men  whose  names,  great  as  th^ 
are  in  the  advertisement,  seem  to  liave  been  passed  01 
unduly  by  writers  on  ancient  sports  and  pastimes,  who  5< 
to  regard  Figg  and  Broughton  as  the  fathers  of  the 
sword  and  the  boxing  match : — 

ATryai  of  Skill  to  be  jwrfonned  at  His  Majesty's  Bear  Gardeoj 
Hockley-in-thc-IIole,  on  Thursday  next,  being  the  gth  insl 
betwixt  these  following  masters ; — Edmund  Button,  master  of 
noble  science  of  defence,  who  hath  lately  cut  down  Mr  Hasgit  and 
Champion  of  the  West,  and  ^  bendesj  and  James  Harris,  an  Herefoi 
shire  man,  master  of  the  noble  science  of  defence,  who  has  foogfcT 
98  prircs  and  never  ^\-as  worsted,  to  exercise  the  usual  weapons,  at  3 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon  precisely. 

Exhibitions  of  swordsmanship  and  cudgel-play  were  very 
frequent  in  the  early  pan  of  the  eighteenth  centur)*,  but 
ultimately  pugilism,  which  at  first  was  merely  an  auxiliary 
of  the  other  sports,  took  tlie  lead,  most  probably  through 
the  invention  of  mufflers  or  gloves,  first  brought  into  notice 
by  Broughton,  who  was  the  most  skilful  boxer  of  his  time 
This  wasj  however,  many  years  subsequent  to  the  date  of 
the  foregoing. 

The  year  1702  is  noticeable  from  the  fact  that  in  it 
produced  the  first  daily  paper  with  which  we  have 
acc^uaintancc,  and,  unless  the  doctrine  that  nothing  is 
under  the  sun  holds  good  in  this  case,  the  first  daily  pa 
ever  puWished.  From  it  we  take  the  following,  wh; 
appears  on  December  i,  and  which  seems — as  no  name 
address  is  given,  and  as  the  advertiser  does  not  even  know 
the  name  of  the  gentleman,  or  anything  about  him  beyond 
what  is  told  in  the  advertisement — to  have  emanated  from 
one  of  the  stews  which  were  even  then  pretty  numerous 
London : — 


1 


Tiyr  ISSED,  on  Sunday  ni^jht,  a  large  hanging  coat  of  Irish  fri 
'^'^*-     supposed  to  be  la^cn  away  (ihro'  mistake)  by  a  gentleman 
fair  campaign  wig  and  light-coloured  dothca ;  if  he  will  please  to  re- 
member where  he  took  it,  and  bring  it  back  again,  it  will  be 
received. 


EARL  Y  PAHT  OF  EICHTEENTH  CEyTCR  Y 


MS 


\\'e  should  imagine  thit,  unless  both  coats  and  gentlemen 
were  more  plentiful,  in  proportion  to  the  population,  in 
those  days  than  they  are  now,  the  rightful  owner,  who 
bad  probably  also  been  a  visitor  at  the  establishment,  went 
without  a  garment  which,  judging  by  the  date,  must  have 
been  peculiarly  liable  to  excite  cupidity.  Nothing  notice- 
able occurs  for  a  long  time,  except  the  growth  of  raffli 
advertisements,  and  notices  of  lotteries.  These  arrange- 
ments were  called  sales,  though  the  only  things  sold  were 
most  likely  the  confiding  speculators.  Everything  possible 
ivas  during  this  age  put  up  to  be  raffled,  though,  with  the 
exception  of  the  variety  of  the  items,  which  included  eat- 
ables, wearing  apparel,  houses,  carriages  and  horses,  &c 
&c.,  there  is  nothing  calling  for  coraraent  about  the  style 
of  the  notices.  In  the  Postman  of  July  19-22,  1707,  we  at 
last  come  upon  this,  which  is  certainly  peculiar  from  more 
than  one  point  of  view: — 

MR  Benjamin  Ferrers,  Facc-paintcr,  the  gentleman  that  can't 
neilber  ^pcak  nor  hear,  is  removed  from  the  Crown  and 
Dagger  at  Charing  Crou  into  Chandois  Street,  next  door  to  the  sign 
o(  ibc  Three  Tuns  in  Covent  Garden, 


This  must  have  been  one  of  the  few  cases  in  which 
physical  disability  becomes  a  recommendation.  Yet  the 
process  of  whitening  sepulchres  must  after  a  lime  have 
become  monotonous  to  even  a  deaf  and  dumb  man.  \Vc 
suppose  the  highest  compliment  that  could  have  been  paid 
to  his  work  was,  that  the  ladies  who  were  subjected  to  it 
looked  "  perfect  pictures."  Just  about  this  time  the  use  of 
advertisements  for  the  purposes  of  deliberate  puffery  began 
to  be  discovered  by  the  general  trader,  and  in  the  Dat'fy 
Cfurant  of  March  24.  1707,  occurs  a  notice  couched  in  the 
style  of  pure  hyperbole,  and  emanating  from  the  establish- 
ment of  G,  Willdcy  and  T.  Brandreth,  at  the  sign  of  the 
Archimedes  and  Globe,  on  Ludgate  Hill,  who  advertised  a 
microscope  which  magnified  objects  more  than  two  ailUoD 


146 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERT/SING, 


times,  and  a  concave  metal  that  united  the  sunbeams 
vigorously  that  in  a  minute's  time  it  melted  steel  and  vitrifi< 
the  hardest  substance.     '*AIso,"  the  notice  went  on  to 
*'we  do  protest  we  pretend  to  no  impossibilities,  and  tl 
we  scorn  to  impose  on  any  gentleman  or  others,  but 
we  make  and  sell  shall  be  really  good,  and  answer  the  ei 
we  propose  in  our  advertisements."     Spectacles  by  whi< 
objects  might  be  discovered  at  twenty  or  thirty  miles*  di 
tance,  "  modestly  speaking/'  are  also  mentioned ;  ** 
the  ingenious  opticians  finish  off  with,  "  we  are  now  writii 
a  small  treatise  with  the  aid  of  the  learned  that  gives 
reasons  why  they  do  so,  which  will  be  given  gratis  to  oi 
customers."    This  is  an  effort  which  would  not  have  di 
graced  the  more  mature  puffers  of  following  ages.     But 
aroused  the  anger  and  indignation  of  the  former  empIoy< 
of  Willdcy  and  Brand  rcth,  who  having  duly  considered 
matter,  on  April  16  put  forth,  also  in  the  Daiiy  Court 
an  opposition  statement,  which  ultimately  led  to  a  regi 
newspaper  warfare  : — 

"DY  John  Yajwell  and  Ralph  Sterrop,   Right  Spectacles, 
-*-'     and  olhcr  optic  glasses,  etc,  were  first  brought  to  perfection 
our  own  proper  art,  and  needed  not  the  boasted   indasiry  of 
two  apprentices  to  recommend  them  to  the  world  ;  who  by  fraudeni 
appropriating    to  themselves  what   they  never  did,  and  obstinati 
pretending  to  what  they  never  can  perform,  can  have  no  other  end 
view  than  to  astonish  the  ignorant,  impose  on  the  credulous,  and  ami 
the  public.     For  which  reason  and  at  the  request  of  several  gentlei 
already  imposed  on,  as  also  to  prevent  such    further  abuses  as 
arise  from  the  repeated  advertisements  of  these  two  wonderful 
formers,  we  John  Yarwcll  and  Ralph  Sterrop  do  give  public  nolii 
that  to  any  person  who  shall  think  it  woith  his  while  to  make  the 
experiment,  we  will  demonstrate  In  a  minute's  time  the  insuflictency  of_ 
tlie  instrument  and  the  vanity  uf  the  workmen   by  comparing   Ifat 
miraculous  Two-Foot,  with    our  Tliree  and  Four  Foot  Telesc< 
And  thercfure,  till  such  a  telescope  be  made,  as  shall  come  up  to 
character  of  iheiie  unparalleled  performers,  we  must  declare  il  to 
very  impossible  tiling. 

Then  the  old-established  and  indignant  masters  pro< 


EARI.  y  FAH  T  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTUR  Y.       1 47 

to  recommend  their  own  spectacles,  perspectives,  &c.,  In 
more  moderate  terms  than  were  employed  by  their  late 
apprentices,  but  still  in  an  extremely  confident  manner.  This 
appeared  for  several  days,  and  at  last,  on  April  25,  elicited 
the  following  reply  : — 

WHEREAS  Mr  Yarwell.  Mr  Stcrrop,  and  Mr  Marshall,  the  a 
first  were  oar  Masters  wilh  whom  we  sencd  our  Apprentice* 
ships,  and  since  for  several  years  we  have  made  the  but  of  work  foi 
tbem  and  Mr  MarshaiU  And  now  they  beJnij  envious  at  our  pros- 
perity hare  published  several  false,  deceitful  and  malicious  adver- 
tiiements,  wherein  tliey  a&sert  tliat  we  cheat  all  that  buy  any  of  oitr 
goods,  and  that  we  pretend  to  many  impossibilities,  and  impose  on 
the  public,  ihcy  having  wr&stcd  the  words  and  scn^c  of  our  adverluie- 
ments,  pretend  that  wc  affirm  that  a  2  Foot  Telescope  of  our  making 
will  do  as  much  as  the  be&t  4  Foot  of  another  man's  make,  and  they 
(lauduleutly  show  in  their  shops  one  of  their  best  4.  Foots  against  our 
small  one,  and  then  cry  out  against  the  insufficiency  of  our  instrument. 
Now  we  G.  Willdey  and  Th.  Brandreth  being  notoriously  abused, 
decUrc  (bat  we  never  did  as^rt  any  such  thing,  or  ever  did  pretend 
to  impossibilities,  but  will  make  good  in  every  particular  all  those 
[note,  these  are  their  own  words]  (imiTOssible,  incredable,  miraculous 
vondciful,  and  astonishing)  things  mentioned  in  our  advertisements; 
which  things  perhaps  may  be  impossible,  incredible,  miraculous, 
wonderful,  and  astonishing  to  ihcm,  but  wc  assure  tlicm  they  are  not 
•0  to  us  :  For  wc  have  small  miraculous  tclescoi)cs,  as  tlicy  arc  pleased 
to  call  thon,  that  do  such  wonders  that  they  say  it  is  impoisible  to 
make  such,  by  the  assistance  of  which  we  will  lay  any  person  £\o^ 
that  instead  of  3  miles  mentioned,  wc  will  tell  them  the  hotir  of  the 
day  3  if  not  4  miles  by  such  a  dial  as  St  James's  or  Uow. 


After  this  the  recalcitrant  apprentices  repeat  all  their 
former  boasts,  and  conclude  :  '*  All  these  things  are  as  they 
say  impossible  to  them,  but  are  and  will  be  made  by  G. 
Willdey  and  T.  Brandrcth.  .  ,  .  Let  ingenuity  thrive." 
Willdey  and  Brandreth  now,  no  doubt,  thought  that  they 
had  turned  the  tables  upon  their  former  masters,  and  had  all 
the  best  of  the  battle  \  but  the  dud  was  not  yet  over,  as  the 
second  time  this  advertisement  appeared  {Daily  Cottrant^ 
April  a6),  the  following  was  immediately  under  it : — 


148 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERT/SING. 


A  CONFIDENT  Mountebank  by  Ihe  help  of  Iiis  bragging  i 
passes  upon  the  ignorant  as  n  profound  doctor,  the  coinii 
medicines  and  the  easiest  operations  in  such  an  one's  hand,  sU 
cried  up  as  miracles.     But  there  are  mountebanks  In  other  arts  i 
as  in  physick  :  Glasgrinding  it  seems  is  not  free  from  'em,  a^ 
seen  in  ihc  vain  boastings  of  Willdcy  and  Brnndrilh.     'Tis  well  1 
to  all  gentlemen  that  have  had  occasion  to  use  optic  glassci  I 
Yarwell  was  the  true  improver  of  that  art,  and  has  deservedly  o^ 
for  it,  in  all  parts  abroad  as  -well  ns  nt  home.     He  and  R,  Strf 
who  lives  in  the  old  shop  in  Lurlgate  Street,  have  always  and  dd 
make  as  true  nnd  good  works  of  all  kinds  in  tJint  art  as  any  m« 
do.     And  we  are  so  far  from  discouraging  any  improvement,  tlj 
gladly  receive  from  any  band,  and  will  be  at  any  cxpcncc  to 
practice  an  invention  really  advantageous  in  the  art.     But  W 
perfonnances  are  bO  far  from    improvements   tliat  we  are 
oppose  any  of  our  work  to  his  and  stake  any  wager  upon  the  ju^ 
of  a  skilful  man.     And  because  he   talks  so  particularly  of 
foot  telescope,  to  let  the  world  see  that  there  is  nuthing  in  that  l 
we  will  slake  lo  Guineas  upon  a  two-foot  telescope  of  outs  aga 
same  of  his.     And  further    to  take  away  all  pretensions  of  o< 
paring  one  on  purpose,  if  any  gentleman  that  has  a  two-foot  te 
bought  of  us  within  a  year  past,  and  not  injured  in  the  use, 
dace  it,  we  \vill  lay  5  Guineas  upon  its  performance  ngainst 
theirs  of  the  same  date.    This  is  bringing  the  matter  upon  the  s 
and  will,  we  hope,  satisfy  the  world  that  we  are  not  worse  woi 
than  tho&e  we  Uiught. 


Again  the  young  men  ventured  into  print  (May  i, 
to  reply,  and  to  defend  what  they  were  pleased  to  cal 
naked  truth,  "against  the  apparent  malicious  lies  and  abg 
of  their  former  employers,  in  whose  last  advertise! 
they  pointed  out  some  inconsistencies,  clainoed  the  iin 
tion  of  the  perfected  spectacles  as  theirs,  and  endd 
offering  to  bet  "  20  guineas  to  their  10,  that  neitherj 
nor  Mr  Marshall  can  make  a  better  telescope  than  we  I 
This,  though  rather  a  descent  from  the  high  horse 
viously  occupied  by  llieui,  was  sufiicient  to  rousej 
anger  of  an  interested  yet  hitherto  passive  s] 
and  Mr  Marshall  presently  (May  8)  indignantly 
forth: — 


EAKL  y  FART  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY,       149 


TilE  best  method  now  used  for  Grinding  SpecUdes  and  olhcr 
glasses,  was  by  me  at  great  diar^e  and  pains  found  out«  which 
I  shewed  to  the  Royal  Society  in  the  year  1693,  and  l>y  ihcm  approved ; 
being  gentlemen  the  best  ikillcd  in  optics,  for  which  they  gave  me 
their  cenificate  to  let  the  world  know  what  I  had  done.  Since  which 
I  haTc  made  spectacles,  telescopes,  and  microscopes,  for  all  the  Kings 
tnd  Pfince's  Courts  in  Europe.  And  as  for  the  2  new  spectacle  makers, 
that  would  insinuate  to  the  world  that  they  were  my  best  workmen  for 
levcnl  years  :  the  one  T  never  employed,  the  other  I  found  aa  I  doubt 
not  bnt  many  gentlemen  have  and  will  find  them  both,  to  be  only 
bouter^  and  not  petfurrnccs  uf  what  Ihey  advertise^  &c.  &c. 

After  pursuing  this  strain  till  he  had  run  down,  Mr  Mar- 
shall concludes  by  saying,  "A\Tiat  I  have  inserted  is  nothing 
but  truth."  At  the  same  time  Yarwell  and  Stcrrop  over- 
whelmed the  raisers  of  this  hornets'  nest  with  a  new  atten- 
tion, .in  which  among  other  things  was  the  following  : — 

Mr  Willdcy  and  Brandreth  have  the  folly  to  believe  that  abundance 
of  words  is  sufficient  to  goin  applause,  and  therefore  throw  'cm  out 
without  regard  to  truth  and  reason,  but  as  that  is  an  afTront  to  the 
cnderstanding  of  gentlemen  that  use  the  goods  they  sell,  they  being 
persons  of  discerning  judgment,  there  ncc<ls  no  olticr  answer  to  what 
they  have  published  than  to  compare  one  part  with  another.  They  set 
forth  wilh  a  lying  vaunt  that  their  two-foot  telescope  would  pcrfonn 
the  same  that  a  common  four-foot  one  would  do,  and  when  'twas 
replied  that  was  faUe,  and  a  four-foot  one  offered  to  try,  they  poorly 
shift  off  with  crying  '*  That  's  one  of  your  best  four-foot  ones."  Now 
ve  profess  to  make  none  but  best,  the  glasses  of  every  one  being  true 
ground  and  lightly  adjusted,  and  the  dt(Terence  in  price  arrises  only 
from  the  goodness,  ornaments,  and  convenience  of  the  case,  neither  can 
he  produce  a  four-foot  one  of  anybody's  make,  tliat  does  not  far  exceed 
bis  two-foot,  nor  does  his  two-fuot  one  at  all  exceed  our?,  which  they 
don't  DOW  pretend.  And  therefore  the  lie  is  all  on  his  side,  and  the 
impossibility  in  his  pretensions  is  as  strong  as  ever,  and  what  we  have 
aid  is  just  truth,  and  his  foul  language  no  better  than  Billingsgate  rail- 
ing. But  it  seems  because  we  do  not  treat  him  in  his  own  way  and 
decry  his  goods  as  much  as  he  docs  other  men's,  he  has  the  folly  to 
construct  it  as  an  ncUnowledgcmcnt  that  his  excel.  But  we  are  so  far 
fcom  allowing  that,  tliat  we  do  aver  iliey  have  nothing  to  brag  of  but 
what  (hey  leomt  of  us,  and  Brandreth  was  so  indiffciY^nt  a  workman 
that  Marshall,  who  had  taken  him  for  a  journeyman,  was  fain  to  turn 
bim  off.     The  secrets  they  brag  of  is  all  a  falsehood^  and  the  raicr<i- 


1 
I 


ISO 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


I 


scope  the  same  that  aiiy  one  may  hare  from  Citlpeper  vrl 
maker.  We  have  already  lold  the  world  that  we  will  venture  oir 
wager  upon  the  performance  of  our  two  foot  telescope  against  tbein 
and  we  would  be  glad  to  have  it  taken  up  that  we  might  liaVe  tb 
opportunity  of  showing  that  ours  exceeds,  and  letting  the  world 
that  his  brags  arc  only  such  as  mountebanks  make  in  medicine. 

Finally,  in  the  Daily  Cottraui  iov  May  12,  1707,  WilU 
and  Bi^ndreth  once  again  insert  their  vaunt,  and  then  pro 
ceed  to  demolish  their  late  employers  thus  : —  ■ 

We  do  afiirm  U  [the  telescope  made  by  W.&B.]  to  be  the  plcas&ntd 
and  uscfullest  instrument  of  this  kind,  and  what  our  adversaries  hav 
said  against  it  is  faUe  and  proceeds  from  an  ill  desigii ;  we  hav 
already  offered  to  lay  them  20  guineas  to  their  10  that  they  could  no 
make  a  better,  but  tliey  knowing  they  were  not  capable  to  engage  u 
in  that  particular,  said  in  their  answer  that  there  needs  no  more  thai 
to  compare  one  instrument  with  nnolhcr  that  they  may  have  the  oppox 
lunily  of  shewing  that  theirs  exceeds ;  to  which  proposal  we  do  agree 
and  to  that  purpose  have  bought  3  of  their  best  telescopes  that  wi 
might  be  sure  of  one  that  was  good,  though  they  say  in  their  advertise 
menta  that  they  make  none  but  the  best,  and  we  arc  ready  lo  give  ou: 
oalhs  that  no  damage  has  been  done  them  since  tliey  were  bought 
And  now  lo  bring  these  raatlers  to  an  end,  we  will  lay  them  ao  guinea: 
to  their  10,  tliat  3  of  our  best  of  the  same  sizes  are  better  that 
them  ;  and  any  genUeman  (hat  will  may  see  the  experiment  tried  la  lu 
instant  at  our  shop,  where  tlicy  may  also  see  that  our  best  pockc 
telescope  comes  not  far  short  of  their  best  large  4  Foot  one.  Atk 
several  other  curiosities  all  made  to  the  greatest  perfection.  Aw 
whereas  Mr  Yarwell,  Mr  Slerrop,  and  Mr  Marshall  have  maliciously, 
fal-sly,  and  unjustly  insinuated  that  we  are  but  indifferent  workmen 
several  persons  being  justly  moved  by  that  scandalous  aspersion,  havi 
offered  to  give  their  oaths  that  they  have  often  heard  them  say  that  wi 
were  the  best  of  workmen,  and  that  we  understood  our  bosiness  as  wel 
as  themselves.  And  as  such  we  do  each  of  us  challenge  them  all  ; 
severally  to  work  with  them,  who  does  most  and  best  for/'ao.  As  foi 
the  Microscope  it  is  onr  own  invention,  and  2  of  them  were  made  byre 
before  any  person  saw  them,  as  we  can  prove  by  witnesses ;  as  wc  olst 
can  their  railing  and  scandalous  aspersions  to  be  false.  All  person 
may  be  assured  that  all  our  instruments  do  and  will  answer  the  char 
acter  given  them  in  the  odveriisements  of  T,  tirandreth  and  G.  Willd^, 
&c.  &c. 

Whether  the  game  was  too  expensive,  or  whether  the 


EARL  Y  PART  OF  ElG/ITEF.NTIl  CENTUR Y,       15 1 

firm  was  shut  up  by  this,  we  know  not,  but  anyhow  they 
retired  from  the  contest,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  found  that 
riralry  fosters  rather  tlian  injures  business.  We  have  given 
particular  attention  to  this  conflict  of  statements,  as  it  shows 
how  soon  advertisements,  after  they  had  become  general, 
were  used  for  aggressional  and  objectionable  trade  purposes. 
Passing  on  for  a  little  space,  until  1709,  the  Tatlcr  appears 
on  the  scene,  and  commences  with  a  full  share  of  adverlise- 
tnents^  and  very  soon  one  is  found  worthy  of  quotation. 
Tiiis  appears  on  March  21,  and  is  a  form  of  application 
which  soon  found  favour  with  the  gallants  and  ladies  of 
pleasure  of  the  day: — 

A  GENTLEMAN  who,  ihe  Ivrenlielli  instant,  had  ihc  honoar  to 
conduct  a  Udy  out  of  a  boat  at  Whitcha.ll  Stairs,  desires  to  know 
when  he  may  wait  on  her  to  disclose  a  matter  of  concern.  A  letter 
directed  to  Mr  Samuel  Rcex'es,  to  Ijc  left  with  Mr  May,  at  the  Golden 
Head,  the  upper  end  of  New  Southampton  Street,  Covent  Garden. 

There  are  about  this  time  many  instances  appearing  in 
the  notice  columns  of  what  has  been  called  love  at  first  sight, 
though  from  the  fact  that  advertisements  had  to  bring  their 
influence  to  bear  on  the  passion,  it  looks  as  though  tl\e 
impression  took  some  time  to  fix  itself.  Otherwise  the 
declaration  might  have  been  made  at  once,  unless,  indeed, 
timidity  prevented  it.  Perhaps,  too,  the  occasional  presence 
of  a  gentleman  companion  might  have  deterred  these  inflam- 
mable youths  from  prosecuting  their  suits  and  persecuting 
the  objects  of  their  temporary  adoration.  Just  after  the 
foregoing  we  come  upon  a  skve  advertisement  couched  in 
the  following  terras  : — 

A  BLACK,  boy,  twelve  years  of  age,  fit  to  wait  on  a  gentleman,  to 
be  dbposcd  of  at  Dcnis*8  Coffee  house  in  Finch  Lane,  near  the 
Royal  Exchange. 

There  is  no  mincing  the  matter  about  this,  and  as,  at  the 
same  time,  a  very  extensive  traffic  was  carried  on  in  "white 
flesh"  for  the  plantations,  the  advertiser  would  doubtless 


«S2 


HISTORY  OF 4-DVERTISrXG. 


have  regarded   sympathy  with   his   property  as   not  oi 
kliotic  but  offensive.     And  then  wc  light  on  what  must 
regarded  as  an  advertisement,  though  it  emanates  from  th< 
editorial  sanctum,  and  is  redolent  of  that  humour  whici 
first  identified  with  the  TafUr,  has  never  yet  been  surpasse( 
and,  as  many  still  say,  never  equalled  : — 

ANV  ladies  who   have  any  particulcir  stories  of  their  acquaintanc 
■**•    which  they  are  willing  privately  lo  make  public,  may  send  * 
by  Ihc  penny  post  to  Isaac  BickcrslafT,  Esq.,   enclosed  lo  Mr  JoU 
Morphcu,  near  Stationers'  Hall. 

What  a  chance  for  the  lovers  of  scandal,  and  doubtle 
they  readily  availed  themselves  of  it.     Many  a  hearty  laugl 
must  Steele  have  had  over  the  communications  receive 
and  many  of  them  must  have  afforded  him  the  groundwoi 
for  satires,  which  at  the  time  must  have  struck  home  indcc 
In  the  following  year  "  Isaac  Bickerstaff,  Esquire,"  seems 
have  taken  it  into  his  head  iliat  John  Partridge,  the  astro! 
ger,  ought  to  be  dead,  if  he  really  was  not,  and  so  inserte 
a  series  of  advertisements  to  the  effect  that  that  worthy  had 
really  departed  this  life,  which,  however  amusing  to  th^H 
Tatier  folk  and  the  public,  seem  to  have  nearly  driven  th^^ 


stargazer  wild.*     One 
appears  on  August  so. 


of  the   best  of  this 
1710,  runs  thus  : — 


senes,  which 


•  This  is  Parlridge  the  almanac-maker,  who  was  fortunate  enough 
Ijc  mentioned  iu  the  "  Rape  of  the  Lock."     AAcr  the  rape  has  \ok\ 
place  the  poem  goes  on  to  say — 

**  Thit  the  /vdM  tHOHiif  jihalt  from  the  Mall  stirveyt 
And  hail  wiih  music  ils  ]<roi)ilioa«  ray  ; 
This  ihclilr^l  Uivrr  ftliall  for  Venus  Luke, 
Ad'I  Mfid  lip  pmyers  fmm  Rosmnundii's  Juice : 
I'hU  Partnd);e  soon  ikHall  view  in  cloudlcti  skici^ 
WlicD  ncil  h«  IomIcs  ihrotigh  Galileo's  ej'vs; 
And  hence  the  csregiauii  vriurd  ihalt  foredoom 
llie  fate  of  Louis  and  the  fail  of  Rome." 

It  would  seem,  therefore,  that  the  guiding  spirits  of  ihe  TatUr^  fancying 
that  he  had  received  undue  publicity  in  a  favourable  manner,  were  dii-^ 
posed  to  show  Partridge  that  <dl  advertUcmenUi  are  not  necessari] 
linnets  to  basinc<%s. 


-A 


EARLY  PART  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY.       i^ 

XlfHEREAS  an  ignorant  Upstart  in  Astrology  has  pnblidy  endca- 
■  ■  vourcH  to  persuade  the  world  that  be  is  the  late  John  Partridge, 
who  died  the  28  of  March  1718,  these  are  to  certify  all  whom  it  may 
c<mccin,  tliat  the  true  John  Partridge  vnts  not  only  dead  at  that  time 
hut  continue*  so  to  the  prc«nt  day.  Beware  of  count erfcits,  for  such 
art  abroad. 

The  quiet  yet  pungent  drollery  of  this  is  aJmost  irresistible, 
but  it  has  the  effect  of  making  us  rather  chary  of  accepting 
any  of  the  remaining  advertisements  which  look  at  all  like 
emanations  from  the  quaint  fancy  of  the  editor.  Take  the 
following,  for  instance,  which  is  found  among  a  number  of 
others  of  an  ordinary  character,  undistinguished  from  them 
by  any  peculiarity  of  type  or  position.  It  seems,  however, 
to  betray  its  origin  : — 

rhi  CharitahU  AdvUt  Offi(f,  where  all  persons  may  have  the  opinion 
ofdigni^ed  Clergymen,  learned  Council,  Graduate  Physicians, 
■nd  experienced  Sui^eons,  to  any  question  in  Divinity,  Morality,  Law, 
Pljysic,  or  Surgery,  with  proper  Prescriptions  within  twelve  hours  aficr 
they  have  delivered  in  a  state  of  their  case.  Those  who  can't  write 
may  have  their  cases  slated  at  the  office.  *  •  The  fees  arc  only  \s.  at 
delivery  or  sending  yonr  case,  and  u.  more  on  re-delivering  that  and 
the  opinion  upon  it,  being  what  is  thought  sufficient  to  defray  the 
Deces^ary  expense  of  servants  and  office-rent. 

The  theory  of  advertising  must  about  this  time  have 
Iieen  found  considerably  interesting  to  men  who  were 
imhkely  to  participate  in  its  benefits  unless  it  were  through 
the  increased  prosperity  of  the  newspapers  to  which  they 
contributed,  for  essays  and  letters  on  the  subject,  some 
humorous  and  others  serious,  appear  quite  frequently.  Most 
noticeable  among  the  former  is  an  article  from  the  pen  of 
Addis''*n,  which  appears  in  No.  224  of  the  TaHo\  date 
September  14,  17 10.  It  will  speak  better  for  itself  than  we 
can  apeak  for  it: — 

*'  Mattriem  nt/era&a/ iffius.—Ov in.  Met.  ii.  5. 
•*  The  matter  cqaall'd  not  the  artist's  skill. — R.  Wvnne. 

"  It  is  my  custom,  in  a  dearth  of  news,  to  entertain 
myself  with  those  collections  of  advertisements  that  appear 


^^^gg^ 


154 


mSTORY  OF  ADVERT/SIXG, 


at  the  end  of  our  public  prints.  These  I  consider 
accounts  of  news  from  the  little  world,  in  the  same  roam 
that  the  foregoing  parts  of  the  paper  are  from  the  grea 
If  in  one  we  hear  that  a  sovereign  prince  is  fled  from 
capital  city,  in  the  other  we  hear  of  a  tradesman  who  h 
shut  up  his  shop  and  nm  away.  If  in  one  we  find  the  vi 
tory  of  a  general,  in  the  other  we  see  the  desertion  of  a 
private  soldier.  I  must  confess  I  have  a  certain  weakness 
in  my  temper  that  is  often  very  much  affected  by  these  little 
domestic  occurrences,  and  have  frequently  been  caught 
with  tears  in  my  eyes  over  a  melancholy  advertisement. 

"  But  to  consider  this  subject  in  its  most  ridiculous  lights, 
advertisements  are  of  great  use  to  the  vulgar.  First  of  all 
as  they  are  instruments  of  ambition.  A  man  that  is  by  no 
means  big  enough  for  the  Gazette,  may  easily  creep  into  the 
advcrltscments ;  by  which  means  we  often  see  an  apothe- 
cary in  the  same  paper  of  news  with  a  plenipotentiary,  or  a 
running  footman  with  an  ambassador.  An  advertisement 
from  Piccadilly  goes  down  to  posterity  with  an  article  from 
Madrid,  and  John  Bartlett*  of  Goodman's  Fields  is  cele- 
brated in  the  same  paper  with  the  Emperor  of  Germany. 
Thus  the  fable  tells  us,  that  the  wren  mounted  as  high 
as  the  eagle,  by  getting  upon  his  back. 

"A  second  use  which  this  sort  of  writings  have  be 
turned  to  of  late  years  has  been  the  management  of  conlr 
versy,   insomuch  that  above   half  tlie  advertisements  o 
meets  with  nowadays  are  purely  polemical.     The  inventor^ 
of  *  Strops  for  Razors'  have  written  against  one  another  this 
way  for  several  years,  and  that  with  great  bitterness  ;t 


i 


•  An  odvertifting  trussmaker  of  that  day. 

f  A  specimen  advertisement  of  one  of  these  inventors  appears  in  tl 
Postman  of  January  6-9,  1 705  : — 


SINCE  Ro  many  upstarts  do  daily  publish  one  thing  or  other 
counterfeit  ihc  orit;inal  strops,  for  setting  raiors  penknives,  lancet 
etc,  upon,  Ami  prctcml  Uiem  to  he  most  excellent ;  the  first  author  of "' 


EARLY  PART  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY. 


155 


c  whole  argument /r£?  and  con  in  the  case  of  the  *  Mom- 
g  Gown '  is  still  carried  on  after  the  same  manner.  I 
eed  not  mention  the  several  proprietors  of  Dr  Anderson's 
pills  ;  nor  take  notice  of  the  many  satirical  works  of  this 
nature  so  frequently  published  by  Dr  Clark,  who  has  liad 
the  confidence  to  advertise  upon  that  learned  knight,  ray 
very  worthy  friend.  Sir  William  Read  :*  but  I  shall  not  inter- 
y  pose  in  their  quarrel :  Sir  William  can  give  him  his  own  in 
^^■dvertisements,  that,  in  the  judgment  of  the  impartial,  are 
^^■s  well  penned  as  the  Doctor's. 

^H  "The  third  and  last  use  of  these  writings  is  to  inform 
l^^he  world  where  they  may  be  furnished  with  almost  every 
thing  that  is  necessar)'  for  life.  If  a  man  has  pains  in  his 
head,  colics  in  his  bowels,  or  spots  in  his  clothes,  he  may 
here  meet  with  proper  cures  and  remedies.  If  a  man  would 
recover  a  wife  or  a  horse  that  is  stolen  or  strayed  ;  if  he 
wants  new  sermons,  clectuarieSt  asses'  milk,  or  anything  else. 


I  laid  strops,  does  hereby  testify  that  all  such  sort  of  things  are  only 
BUde  in  imitation  of  ihc  Inic  oncjt,  which  are  permitted  to  be  sold  by 
ID  one  but  ^Ir  Shipton,  at  John's  CofTee  House,  in  Exchange  Alley,  ai 
■■th  txren  often  mentioned  in  the  Gazettes,  to  prevent  people  being 
knher  imposed  upon. 
u 


An  opposition  notice  appears  shortly  afterwards  in  the  Daily  Ccurant 
January  1 1 : — 


THE  Right  Venetian  Strtpt^  being  the  only  famM  ones  made,  aa 
appears  by  the  many  thousands  that  have  been  sold,  noiwitlistand- 
ing  the  many  false  shams  ami  ridiculous  pretences,  as  "original,"  eta, 
iJiat  are  almost  every  day  publiiihed  to  promote  the  sale  of  counterfeits, 
and  to  lessen  the  great  and  truly  wonderful  fame  of  the  Venetian  Strops^ 
which  are  most  certainly  the  best  in  the  world,  fnr  ihcy  will  give  razon, 
penknives,  lancets,  etc,  such  an  exquisite  fine,  smooth,  sharp,  exact 
and  durable  edge,  that  the  like  was  never  known,  which  has  been 
experienced  by  thuu^ands  of  gentlemen  in  England,  Scotland  and  Ire- 
id.  Are  sold  only  at  Mr  AUcraft'&r  a  toy  shop  at  the  Blue  Coat 
>y,  against  tlie  Royal  Exchange,  &c.  &c. 

*  Both  oculists  of  some  renown,  who  advertised  largely. 


156 


mSTOK  Y  OF  ADV'ERliSING. 


either  for  his  body  or  mind,  this  is  the  place   to  look  fc 
them  in. 

''The  great  art  in  writing  advertisements,  is  the  findii 
out  a  proper  method  to  catch  the  reader's  eye,  withoi 
wliich  a  good  thing  may  pass  unobserved,  or  be  lost  amon| 
commissions  of  bankrupt  Asterisks  and  hands  were  foi 
mcrly  of  great  use  for  this  purpose.  Of  late  years  the  N.! 
has  been  much  in  fashion,  as  also  little  cuts  and  6gures,  tl 
invention  of  which  we  must  ascribe  to  the  author  of  sprin| 
trusses.  I  must  not  here  omit  the  blind  Italian  charactei 
which  being  scarce  legible,  always  fixes  and  detains  the  ey< 
and  gives  the  curious  reader  something  like  the  satisfacti< 
of  prj'ing  into  a  secret. 

"  But  the  great  skill  in  an  advertiser  is  chiefly  seen  in 
style  which  he  makes  use  of.     He  is  to  mention  the  'uni 
versal  esteem/  or  'general  reputation*  of  things  that  W( 
never  heard  of.     If  he  is  a  physician  or  astrologer,  he  mi 
change  his  lodgings  frequently ;  and  though  he  never  sal 
anybody  in  them  besides  his  own  family,  give  public  noti( 
of  it,    *  for   the  information  of  the  nobility   and   gentry:! 
Since  I  am  thus  usefully  employed  in  writing  criticisms  oi 
the  works  of  these  diminutive  authors,  I  must  not  pass  ov< 
in  silence  an  advertisement,  which  has  lately  made  its  ap- 
pearance and  is  written  altogether  in  a  Ciceronian  manner. 
It  was  sent  to  me  with  five  shillings,  to  be  inserted  among 
my  advertisements  ;  but  as  it  is  a  pattern  of  good  writing 
in  this  way,  I  shall  give  it  a  place  in  the  body  of  my  paper* 

"  The  highest  coniponnded  Spirit  of  Lavender,  the  most  glorious 
the  cxprcKsion  may  be  used,  enlivening  scent  and  flavour  that  can  poi 
sibly  be,  which  so  raptnres  the  spirits,  delights  the  gusU,  and  gh 
such  aire  to  the  coutilcnance,  as  are  not  to  be  imagined  but  by  th( 
that  have  tried  it.  The  meanest  sort  of  the  thing  is  admired  by  most 
gentlemen  and  ladies  ;  but  this  far  more,  us  by  far  it  exceciU  it,  tu  the 
gaining  among  all  a  more  than  common  esteem.  It  is  sold  in  neat  flint 
bottles,  fit  for  the  pocket,  only  at  the  Golden  Key  in  Wharton's  Court, 
near  Holborn  Bars,  fur  lluec  shillings  and  sixpence,  with  directions. 

*'  At  the  same  time  that  I  recommend  the  several  flowei 


:j 


EARLY  PART  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY.        157 

in  which  this  spirit  of  lavender  is  wrapped  up,  if  the  expres- 
sion may  be  used,  I  cannot  excuse  my  fellow-labourers  for 
adraitiing  into  iheur  papers  several  uncleanly  advertisements, 
not  at  all  proper  to  appear  in  the  works  of  polite  writers* 
Among  them  I  must  reckon  the  '  Carminative  Wind- 
Expelling  Pills.'  If  the  Doctor  had  called  them  •  Carmi- 
native Pills/  he  had  been  as  cleanly  as  any  one  could 
have  wished  ;  but  the  second  word  entirely  destroys  the 
decency  of  the  first.  There  are  other  absurdities  of  this 
^Juture  so  very  gross,  that  I  dare  not  mention  them ;  and 

lail  therefore  dismiss  this  subject  with  an  admonition  to 
Michael  Parrot,  that  he  do  not  presume  any  more  to  men- 
tion a  certain  worm  he  knows  of,  which,  by  the  way,  has 
grown  seven  foot  in  my  memory;  for,  if  I  am  not  much 
mistaken,  it  is  the  same  that  was  but  nine  feet  long  about 
six  months  ago. 

"  By  the  remarks  I  have  here  made,  it  plainly  appears, 
that  a  collection  of  advertisements  is  a  kind  of  miscellany ; 
the  writers  of  which,  contrary  to  all  authors,  except  men  of 
quality,  give  money  lo  the  booksellers  who  publish  their 
copies.  The  genius  of  the  bookseller  is  chiefly  shown  in 
his  method  of  ranging  and  digesting  these  little  tracts.  The 
last  paper  I  look  up  in  my  hands  places  them  in  the  follow- 
ing order : — 

*'The  true  Spanish  blacking  for  shoes,  etc 

"  The  beautifying  cream  for  the  face,  etc. 

"  Pease  and  Plasters,  etc 

"  Nectar  and  Ambrosia,  etc. 

**  Four  freehold  tenements  of  fifteen  pounds  per  annum, 
etc 

**  The  present  state  of  England,  etc, 

"  Annotations  upon  the  Tatler,  etc. 

*'  A  commission  of  Bankrupt  being  awarded  against  R. 
L„  bookseller,  etc." 

This  essay  probably  aroused  a  good  deal  of  attention, 
and  among  tl;e  letters  of  correspondents    is  one  from  a 


158 


IfJSTORY  OF  ADVERnSIAG, 


"Self-interested  Solicitor,"  which  appears  in  No.  228,  am 
runs  thus  :— 

"  Mr  Bickcrsiaff. 

"  I  am    going    to    set   up    for  a   scrivener,   and   have 
thought  of  a  project  which  may  turn  both  to  your  account 
and  mine.      It  came   into    my  head   upon    reading   that 
learned    and    useful    paper    of  yours   concerning    adver- 
tisements.     You   must  understand  I   have  made   myself 
Master  in  the  whole  art  of  advertising,  both  as  to  the  style 
and  the  letter.     Now  if  you  and  I  could  so  manage  it,  that 
nobody  should   write   advertisements   besides   myself,   or 
print  them  anywhere  but  in  your  paper,  we  might  both  of 
us  get  estates  in  a  little  time.     For  this  end  I  would  like- 
wise propose  that  you  should  enlarge  the  design  of  adver- 
tisements, and  have  sent  you  two  or  three  samples  of  raj 
work  in  this  kind,  which  I  have  made  for  particular  friendi 
and  intend  to  open  shop  with.    The  first  is  for  a  gentlemj 
who  would  willingly  marry,  if  he  could  find  a  wife  to 
liking;  the  second  is  for  a  poor  Whig,  who  is  hitely  turn* 
out  of  his  post;  and  the  third  for  a  person  of  a  contrary 
party,  who  is  willing  to  get  into  one. 

"  Whereas  A.  B.  next  door  to  the  Pestle  and  Mortal 
being  about  thirty  years  old,  of  a  spare  make,  with  dark- 
coloured  hair,  bright  eye,  and  a  long  nose,  has  occasion 
for  a  good-humoured,  tall,  fair,  young  woman,  of  about 
^3000  fortune  \  these  are  to  give  notice  That  if  any  sucl^J 
young  woman  has  a  mind  to  dispose  of  herself  in  marriagi^l 
to  such  a  person  as  the  above  mentioned,  she  may  be  pro^^ 
vided  with  a  husband,  a  coach  and  horses  and  a  propor- 
tionable settlement 

**  C.  D.  designing  to  quit  his  place,  has  great  quantttit 
of  paper,  parchment,  ink,  wax,  and  wafers  to  dispose 
which  will  be  sold  at  very  reasonable  rates. 

"  E.  F.  a  person  of  good  behaviour,  sLx  foot  high,  of  a  b!a< 
complexion  and  sound  principles,  wants  an  employ.  He 
an  excellent  penman  and  accomptant,  and  speaks  French, 


k^ 


EAJiL  Y  PAR  T  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTUR  Y.       1 59 


And  so  on,  advertisements  being  then  considered  proper 
sport  for  wits  of  all  sizes  and  every  peculiarity.  In  171 1  we 
come  upon  the  first  edition  of  the  Spectator^  which  certainly 
did  not  disdain  to  become  a  medium  for  most  barefaced 
quacks,  if  wc  may  judge  by  this  : —  J 

AN  adraimble  confect  which  assuredly  cures  Stuttering  and  Stammer- 
'**^  ing  in  chilt.Ucn  or  grown  persons,  thuugb  never  so  bad,  causing 
them  lo  speak  distinct  and  free  without  any  trouble  or  difficulty  ;  it 
resnedies  aJl  manner  of  impediments  in  Lhc  speech  or  disorders  of  the 
voice  of  any  kind,  proceeding  from  what  cause  soever,  rendciiug  those 
persons  capable  uf  speaking  easily  and  ficc,  and  with  a  clear  voice  who 
before  were  not  able  to  utler  a  sentence  without  hesitation.  Its  stupen- 
dous effects  in  so  quickly  and  infaUibly  curing  Stammering  and  all 
disorders  of  the  voice  and  difHcully  in  delivery  of  the  speech  are 
really  wonderful.  Price  25.  6d.  a  pot,  with  directions.  Sold  only  at 
Mr  Osbom's  Toyshop,  at  the  Rose  and  Crown,  under  St  Dunsian's 
church  Fleet  street. 

This  is  a  truly  marvellous  plan  for  greasing  the  tongue. 
The  only  wonder  is  that  the  advertiser  did  not  recommend 
it  as  invaluable  to  public  speakers  for  increasing  the  fluency 
to  such  an  extent  that  the  orator  had  but  to  open  his  momh 
and  let  his  tongue  do  as  it  willed.  And  certainly  the  most 
rebellious  and  self-willed  tongue  could  hardly  give  utterance 
10  more  remarkable  statements,  if  left  entirely  to  itself, 
than  appears  in  the  following,  which  is  also  from  the  ori- 
ginal edition  of  the  Spectator : —  | 

LOSS  of  Memor>',  or  Forgctfulness,  certainly  cured  by  a  grateful 
■*  electuary  peculiarly  adapted  for  that  end;  it  strikes  at  tlie 
primary  source,  which  few  apprehend,  of  forgctfulness,  makes  tlie 
jierul  clear  and  eflsy,  the  spirits  free,  active,  and  undisturbed,  corrobo- 
rates and  revives  all  the  noble  faculties  of  the  soul,  such  as  thought, 
judgment,  apprehension,  reason  and  memory,  which  last  in  particular 
it  so  strengthens  as  to  render  that  faculty  exceeding  quick  and  good 
beyond  imagination  ;  thereby  cnabhng  those  whose  memory  was 
before  almost  totally  lost,  lo  remember  the  minutest  circumstances  of 
tbeir  affairs,  etc.  to  a  wonder.  Price  25.  6tl.  a  pot.  Sold  only  at  Mr 
Faync's  at  the  Angel  aad  Crown,  in  St  Paul's  Cburcliyard,  with 
directions. 


l6o 


HISTORY  or  ADVERTISING. 


• 


It  is  sometimes  possible  to  remember  loo  much  ;  ami  if 
the  specific  sold  by  Mr  Payne  had  but  a  homceopathic 
tendency,  and  caused  those  who  recollected  things  which 
never  happened  to  become  cured  of  their  propensities,  it  is 
a  pity  its  recipe  has  to  be  numbered  among  the  lost  things 
of  this  world.  In  the  beginning  of  1712,  one  Ephraim 
How  seems  to  have  been  possessed  of  a  fear  that  evil  folks 
had  been  trying  to  injure  him  or  Iiis  business,  or  elsr  he 
felt  it  incumbent  on  himself  to  take  the  hint  thrown  out  in 
the  Taticr  essay.  Accordingly  he  published  in  the  Daily 
Courant  the  following  : — 

'\1THEREAS  several  persons  who  sell  knives,  for  the  better  vend- 
'  »  ing  ihcir  bad  wares  spread  reports  that  Ephraim  How,  Cutler 
of  London  is  deceased.  This  is  to  certify  That  he  is  living,  and  kcxips 
his  business  as  formerly^  with  his  son  in  partnership,  at  the  Heart  and 
Crown  on  Saffron  Hill ;  there  being  dirers  imitations,  you  arc  desired 
to  observe  the  mark,  which  is  the  Heart  Crown  and  Dagger,  with 
How  under  it. 

About  this  period  shopkeepers  were  or  pretended  to  be 
particularly  loyal^  for  a  very  large  percentage  of  their  signs 
contained  the  emblem  of  royalty,  coupled  with  various  other 
figures.  Though  the  Methuen  treaty,  which  favoured  the 
importation  of  Portuguese  wines,  and  discouraged  the  use 
of  claret,  was  signed  in  1703,  it  docs  not  appear  to  have 
made  much  diflference  in  this  country  for  some  years,  as 
the  first  mention  we  find  of  the  new  wine  is  in  a  Postboy  of 
January  17 12,  and  is  caused  by  the  rivalry  which  sprang 
up  among  those  who  first  began  to  sell  it ; — 


^JOTICE  is  hereby  given,  That  Mes&icnrs  Trubcy,  at  the  Qac< 
•^^      Arms  Tavern,  the  West  End  of  St  Paul's  Church,  have 
of  Sir  John  Houblon,   76  pipes  of  Kew  natural  Oporio  Wines, 
and  white,  perfect  neat,  and  shall  remain  genuine,  chosen  out  of 
pipes,  and  did  not  buy  the  cflsi-ouls.     Also  they  have  bought  of  oil 
merchants  large  quantiiiea  of  ncxo  natural  Oporto  wines,  with 
choice  (by  the  l.nst  fleet).    And  altho'  the  aforesaid  did  buy  of  Classic 
^rook  and  HeliicTj  new  natural  Oporto  wiacs  of  the  earUesl  impoi 


EARLY  PART  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY.       i6i 

tioii.  which  they  hftve  yet  by  them  ;  and  'lis  not  only  iheJr  05tb  ojimion, 
llut  the  said  Sir  John  Houhlon's  and  other  merchant's  Oporto  wines, 
V  hich  ihcy  have  bovight  are  superior,  and  do  give  us  more  general 
>iti±t'action  ;  for  the  same  is  daily  confirmM  by  gentlemen  and  others 
r>t'  uodoubtcd  judgment  and  credit.  Further  this  asscrtioo  dcM:rves 
rr-^rd.  Til.  That  the  said  Messieun*  Brocik  and  HcHicrs  have  Uni^ht 
of  sc^'cral  mcTchanls  entire  parcels  of  Oporto  and  Vlana  wines,  red  and 
vkhite,  good  and  bod,  thereby  continuing  retailing,  under  the  spedons 
and  faSIacions  pretences  of  natural  red  and  neat  of  thctr  on*n  importing. 
NB^ — The  intentions  of  the  above-named  Vintners  arc  not  any  way 
to  reproach  or  diminUh  the  reputation  of  their  brethren,  nor  insinuate 
to  ihcir  detriment,  sympathizing  with  them.  Note  the  aforesaid  nao 
natural  Oporto  wines,  are  to  be  loM  by  the  aforesaid  vintners  at  £,\h 
per  hogshead,  at  iSd.  per  quart,  without  door?,  and  at  20d.  per  quarts 
within  their  own  houses. 

Brook  &  Hellicr,  whose  wine  is  spoken  of  so  slightingly, 
kept  the  Bumper  Tavern  in  Covent  Garden,  which  had 
formerly  belonged  to  Dick  Estcourt.  They  seem  quite  able 
to  bear  what  has  been  said  of  them,  for  they  have  the 
Sp<ctafor^  who  has  evidently  tasted,  and  quite  as  evidently 
liked  their  wines,  at  their  back,  one  of  the  numbers  of  this 
disinterested  periodical  being  devoted  almost  entirely  to 
lljeir  praise.  The  Spectator  was  by  no  means  averse  to  a 
bit  of  good  genuine  puffer)',  and  Peter  Motteux,  formerly 
an  author  who  had  dedicated  a  poem  or  two  to  Steele,  and 
who  at  that  time  kept  one  of  the  Indian  warehouses  so 
much  in  fashion,  received  kindnesses  in  its  columns  more 
than  once.  So  did  Renatus  Harris  the  organ-builder,  who 
competed  with  Smith  for  the  Temple  organ,  and  many 
others.  So  it  is  not  extraordinary  that  their  advertisement 
is  found  in  the  Spectator  very  shortly  after  that  just  quoted. 
They  seem,  however,  to  have  been  disinclined  to  quarrel,  as 
ihcir  notice  makes  no  mention  of  their  rivals  :— 

BROOK  and  liellicr,  &c  havitig  discovered  that  sctmtiI  gentle- 
men's servants  who  have  liccn  sent  to  thctr  taverns  and  cellars 
for  neat  Oporto  wines  (which  is  iSd.  per  quart)  have  instead  thereof 
bo«|*ht  the  &mall  Viana,  which  is  but  I5d.  a  quart  ;  and  that  some  who 
have  been  »cnt  directly  to  the  above  taverna  and  cellars  have  never 


I6i 


ITISTORY  OF  ADVERTJSmC, 


come  there,  but  carried  home  (like  traitors)  something  else  ftt 
]->laces  for  Brook  and  HcUicrs.  Gentlemen  are  therefore 
when  they  su.spect  thcm.selves  Imposed  on,  to  send  Ihe  wiiJ 
d lately  to  the  place  they  ordered  it  from,  era  note  of  what  il « 
sent  for,  in  order  to  know  the  tnith^  and  Brook  and  HclUeiB  j 
the  extraordinary  charge  of  porters  on  this  occasion. 

From  this  and  kindred  advertisements  it  looks  as 
gentlemen  were  not  at  the  time  in  the  habit  of  ft 
large  quantities  of  wine  in  tlie  house,  but  rather  of 
it  in  fresh  and  fresh  as  required  from  the  tavern,  or  b 
round  themselves,  and  taking  it  home  under  theil 
Also  tl»c  servants  of  the  lime  do  not  appear  to  be  poi 
of  much  more  honesty  than  falls  to  the  lot  of  the  doi 
of  even  these  degenerate  days.  The  effect  of  the  n 
port  as  soon  as  it  was  once  tried,  is  shown  by  the  foil 
which  also  appeared  in  the  January  of  1712,  ia  the 
Courant: — 

'T^lIE  first  Io9s  is  the  best  especially  in  the  Wiae  Trade,  oi 
-^  that  coo^tdetation  Mr  Juhu  Crooke  will  now  sell  bis 
Claret  for  4s.  a  gallun,  to  make  an  end  uf  a  troublciome  am 
trade.  Dated  ihe  7Lh  gf  January  from  hts  vault  in  Oroad  q 
doors  below  the  Angel  and  Crown  Tavern,  bcluud  the  Royal  E< 

John  Cr< 

But  this  appeal  to  the  lovers  of  bargains,  as  well 
claret,  was  evidently  a  failure ;  for  three  or  four  days 
wards,  and  also  in  the  same  paper,  another,  and 
different  attempt,  is  made  to  draw  the  unwilling  dl 
to  the  Angel  and  Crown  : — 

T  T  having  Ijccn  represented  to  Mr  John  Crooke  that  notwiih* 
-^  the  general  approbation  his  French  claret  has  received,  yet  1 
his  customers  out  of  a  covetous  disposition  do  resort  to  other  p 
buy  much  inferior  wine,  and  afterwards  sell  the  same  for  Mr  C 
claret,  which  practices  (if  not  timely  prevented)  do  manifestly 
the  ruin  of  his  undertaking,  and  he  being  finuly  resolved  to  < 
and  prc^rve  the  repuLition  of  his  vault,  and  also  witling  to  \ 
customers  all  fitting  encouragement  ;  for  these  causes  and  oth« 
unto  him  moving,  he  gives  notice  that  from  hencefurib  he  will 
veiy  good  Frcndi  claret  for  no  more  than  4s.  a  gallon  at  his  vm^ 


A 


KARL  Y  PART  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY.       163 

The  fight  between  port  and  claret  was  very  fierce  this 
year,  but  the  new  drink  had  almost  from  the  first  the  best 
of  the  battle,  if  we  may  judge  from  the  strenuous  appeals 
put  forth  by  those  who  have  much  claret  to  sell,  and  who 
evidently  find  it  very  like  a  drug  upon  their  hands.  One 
individual  seems  at  last  to  arrive  at  the  conclusion  that  he 
may  as  well  ask  a  high  price  as  a  low  one  for  his  claret, 
seeing  that  people  are  unwilling  to  buy  in  either  case.  The 
advertisement  occurs  in  the  Daily  Courant  for  December 
29,  1712.  The  wily  concocter  of  the  plan  also  thinks  that 
by  making  three  bottles  the  smallest  limit  of  his  sale,  the 
unwary  may  fancy  a  favour  is  being  conferred  upon  them, 
and  buy  accordingly  ; — 

THE  noWeU  new  French  claret  lh.it  ever  was  imported,  bright, 
deep,  ilfong  and  of  most  dcliciuus  flayour.  being  of  the  very  best 
growth  in  France,  and  never  in  any  cooper  or  vintucj'fi  hands,  but 
porely  neat  from  the  grape,  botllcd  ofT  from  the  lee.  <9il  ihe  quality 
and  gentry  ihat  laste  it,  allow  it  to  be  the  finest  flowed  that  ever  was 
drank.  Trice  424.  the  doao,  bottles  aud  all,  which  h  but  35.  6ci.  a 
bottle,  for  excellence  not  to  be  matched  for  douhle  that,  pr.ce.  None 
las  than  3  bottles.  To  be  had  only  at  the  Golden  Key,  in  Haydon 
Yard,  in  the  Minories,  where  none  but  the  very  best  and  perfectly  neat 
vine  shall  ever  be  sold. 

There  is  good  reason  to  believe  that  the  claret  which 
had  been  so  popular  up  till  this  period,  was  a  very  different 
wine  from  that  which  is  now  known  by  the  same  name.  It 
was,  most  probably,  a  strong  well-sweetened  drink  ;  for,  as 
it  has  ever  been  necessary  to  make  port  thick  and  sweet 
for  the  public  taste,  it  is  most  likely  this  was  at  first  done 
for  the  purpose  of  rivalling  the  claret,  and  folk  would  hardly 
have  turned  suddenly  from  one  wine  to  another  of  a 
decidedly  opposite  character."  The  amount  of  advertising, 
probably  fostered  by  the  wine  rivalry,  grew  so  much  this 
year,  that  the  Ministry  were  struck  with  the  happy  idea  of 
putting  a  tax  upon  every  notice,  and  accordingly  there  is 
a  sudden  fall  off  in  the  number  of  advertisements  in  and 


• 


i64  ff/S  TOR  y  or  AD  VER  T/S/AC 

after  August,  the  month  in  which  the  change  took  place. 
In  fact,  the  Daify  Courant  appears  several  limes  with  only 
one  ativemsement,  that  of  Drury  Lane  Theatre,  the  average 
number  being  hitherto  about  nine  or  ten.  However,  the 
imposers  of  the  tax  were  quite  right  in  their  estimate  of 
the  value  of  advertisements ;  as,  though  checked  for  a 
time,  they  ultimately  grew  again,  though  their  progress 
was  comparatively  slovv  compared  wiih  previous  days.  We 
find  a  characteristic  announcement  just  at  the  close  of  tlie 
year,  one  not  to  be  checked  by  the  duty-charge,  and  so  we 
append  if : — 

T>riS  is  n  give  notice  That  ihcrc  is  a  young  womnn  bom  within 
30  miles  of  London  will  nin  for  ^^50  or;^*ioo,  a  mile  ond  an 
hair,  u-ith  d.nj  oilier  woman  thai  has  livM  a  year  within  the  same  dis* 
lance  ;  upon  any  good  ground,  as  the  parties  conccm'd  shall  agree  to. 

Unnatural  and  unfeminine  exhibitions,  in  accordance 
with  this  advertisement,  of  pugilism,  foot-racing,  cudgel- 
playing,  &c ,  were  at  this  time  not  unfrequent,  and  tlic 
spectacle  of  two  women  stripped  to  the  waist,  and  doing 
their  best  to  injure  or  wear  down  each  other,  was  often 
enjoyed  by  the  bloods  of  the  early  eighteenth  century.  At 
I  the  same  time  that  the  tax  was  placed  on  advertisements, 
the  stamp-duty  on  newspapers  became  an  accomplished 
fact,  and  Swift  tn  his  journal  to  Stella  of  July  9,  1 7 1 2,  says, 
"Grub  Street  has  but  ten  days  to  live,  then  an  Act  of 
Parliament  takes  place  that  ruins  it  by  taxing  every  half- 
sheet  a  halfpenny."  And  just  about  a  month  after,  he 
chronicles  the  effect  of  this  cruelty :  *'  Do  you  know  that 
Grub  Street  is  dead  and  gone  last  week?  No  more  ghosts 
or  murders  now  for  love  or  money.  I  plied  it  close  the 
last  fortniglil  and  published  at  least  seven  papers  of  my 
own,  besides  some  of  other  people's ;  but  now  every  single 
-J  half-sheet  pays  a  halfpenny  to  the  Queen.  The  ObsetTator 
is  fallen ;  the  Medleys  have  jumbled  together  with  the  Flymi, 
Post;  the  Examiner  is  deadly  sick ;  the  Spectator  keeps  up  and 


A 


EAUL  y  PAUT  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTUR  K       165 

es  its  price.  I  know  not  how  long  it  will  hold  Have 
u~seen  the  red  stamp  the  papers  are  marked  with? 
ethinks  the  stamping  is  worth  a  halfpenny."  Thieves 
out  this  lime  seem  to  have  had  delicate  susceptibilities, 
^t  was  the  custom  to  advertise  goods  which  were 
Bubtedly  stolen  as  lost.  Thus  we  see  constantly  in  the 
gn  of  Queen  Anne  such  notices  as  this:  '*  Lost  out  of 
xjom  in  Russell  Street  a  number  of  valuable  objects.  .  . 

.  "Wliocver  brings  them  back  shall  have  ten  guineas 
ward,  or  in  proportion  for  any  part,  and  no  questions 
Kcd."  This  style  of  advertising  grew  so  that  just  about 
*  middle  of  the  century  it  was  found  necessary  to  put  a 
»p  to  it  by  Act  of  Parliament,  which  took  effect  on  the 
St  of  June  1752,  the  penalty  being  ^50  for  any  one  who 
vertised  "  no  questions  asked,"  and  ^50  for  the  publisher 
10  inserted  any  such  notice  in  his  paper.  Haydn  gives 
'&  date  as  1754,  but  a  reference  to  the  General  A dver User 

February  21,  1752,  in  which  the  notice  of  the  date  on 
lich  the  law  is  to  come  Into  effect  appears,  shows  that 
uras  two  years  earlier.  Also  a  reference  to  any  Parlia- 
ibtary  record  of  forty  years  before  that  will  show  that 
tin  1713,  as  Haydn  has  it,  but  on  the  22nd  April  1712, 
r  Conyers  reported  from  Committee  of  the  whole  House, 
10  were  considering  further  ways  and  means  for  raising 
i  supply  granted  10  her  Majesty ;  when  among  other 
jasures  it  was  resolved  that  a  duty  of  I2d.  be  charged  for 
ery  advertisement  in  any  printed  paper,  besides  the  stamp- 
ty  which  was  at  the  same  time  imposed  on  the  news- 
[lers.  This  and  other  extra  taxes  were  levied,  because 
ance  having  refused  to  acknowledge  the  title  of  Queen 
me  till  the  peace  should  be  signed,  it  was  resolved  to 
Dtinue  the  war  *^  till  a  safe  and  honourable  peace  could 

obtained."  For  this  purpose  money  was  of  course 
luired  ;  and  if  they  never  did  good  any  other  way,  or 
y  other  lime,  quacks  and  impostors,  libertines  and 
ds,  did  it  now,  as  they  mainly  contributed  all  that 


i66 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTJSI^C 


I 


was  gathered  for  some  years  by  means  of  the  advertisemei 
tax.  There  seems  to  have  been  a  good  deal  of  drunkenm 
going  on  in  the  time  of  Queen  Anne,  and  the  lavt 
keepers  contributed  in  many  ways  to  swell  the  revenue 
But  even  their  advertisements  drop  off  after  the  impositii 
of  the  lax,  as  do  tliose  of  promoters  of  nostrums  and  Iotteri< 
and  the  managers  of  theatres.  These  public  benefactc 
are,  however,  not  so  blind  to  their  own  interests,  but  tJ 
they  soon  return. 

Notwithstanding  the  many  important  events  of  the  nea 
few  years,  nothing  worthy  of  clironicling  in  the  way 
advertisements  is  to  be  found  till  1720,  when  we  come  U] 
the  following,  which  is  peculiar  as  being  one  of  the  earh 
specimens  of  the  ventilation  of  private  quarrels  by  means 
advertisements.  It  occurs  in  the  Daily  Post  of  Januai 
i6th:— 

AIMIEREAS    an    advertisement  was  lately    put    in    Heathcoti 

'  '  Halfpenny  Post,  by  way  of  challenge  for  me  to  meet  a  pci 
(whose  name  to  mc  is  unknown)  al  Old  Man's  CoflTcchouRe  ni 
Charing  Cro^,  ihe  3S  instant  in  order  to  hear  that  said  person  mi 
out  his  assertions  in  that  Dialogue  we  had  in  Palace  Yard,  the  lit 
of  November  1718,  This  will  let  that  person  know  that  as  he  wod 
not  then  tell  me  Iiis  name,  nor  put  it  to  his  advertisement,  I  condut 
he  is  ashatncd  to  have  it  in  print.  When  he  sends  me  his  name 
writing,  that  I  may  know  wlio  to  ask  for,  I  shall  be  willing  to 
him  at  any  convenit:iit  lime  and  place,  either  by  ourselves  or  with  ti 
friends  on  each  side,  till  ihcn  I  shall  have  neither  list  nor  Itrisure 
obey  his  nameless  summons.  Robert  Curtis. 

Soulhwark,  Jan.  I3lh,  i/tg-sa 

Certainly  time  enough  seems  to  have  elapsed  between  tl 
dialogue  and  the  publication  of  this  advertisement  to  alloi 
of  all  angry  passions  lo  have  subsided ;  but  Robert  Curlii 
whose  name  is  thus  preserved  till  now,  would  seem  to  hai 
been  a  careful  youth,  picking  his  way  clear  of  pitfalls,  am 
with  shrewdness  suflicient  to  discover  that  anonymity  but 
too  often  disguises  foul  intent.     In  that  particular  matters 

ive  not  considerably  improved  even  up  to  the  present  time. 


EAfiL  Y  PAfl T  OF  EIcnTEENTH  CENTURY.       167 

The  year  1720  is  memorable  in  the  history  of  England, 
as  seeing  the  abnormal  growth  and  consequent  explosion 
of  the  greatest  swindle  of  comparatively  modem  times,  and 
one  of  the  most  colossal  frauds  of  any  time,  the  South  Sea 
Scheme,  which  has  been  best  known  since  as  the  South  Sea 
Bubble.  lis  story  has  been  told  so  often,  and  in  so  many 
ways,  thai  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  dwell  upon  it  here ; 
but  as,  though  nearly  every  one  has  heard  of  the  scheme, 
there  are  but  few  who  know  anything  about  it,  we  may  as 
well  give  once  again  a  short  resume  of  its  business  opera- 
tions. It  was  started  by  Harley  in  171 1,  with  the  view 
of  paying  off  the  floating  national  debt,  which  at  that  time 
amounted  to  about  ;£'io,ooo,ooo.  A  contemporary  writer 
says  :  **  TTiis  debt  was  taken  up  by  a  number  of  eminent 
merchants,  to  whom  the  Government  agreed  to  guarantee 
for  a  certain  period  the  annua!  payment  of  ;£6oo,ooo 
(being  six  per  cent  interest),  a  sum  which  was  to  be 
obtained  by  rendering  permanent  a  number  of  import 
duties.  The  monopoly  of  the  trade  to  the  South  Seas  was 
also  secured  to  these  merchants,  who  were  accordingly 
incorporated  as  the  *  South  Sea  Company,*  and  at  once 
rose  to  a  high  |}osition  in  the  mercantile  world.  The 
wondrousiy  extravagant  ideas  then  current  respecting  the 
riches  of  the  South  American  continent  were  carefully 
fostered  and  encouraged  by  the  Company,  who  also  took 
care  to  spread  the  belief  that  Spain  was  prepared,  on  certain 
liberal  conditions,  to  admit  them  to  a  considerable  share 
of  its  South  American  trade ;  and  as  a  necessary  con- 
sequence, a  general  avidity  to  |>artake  in  the  profits  of 
this  most  lucrative  speculation  sprang  up  in  the  public 
mind.  It  may  be  well  to  remark  in  this  place,  that  the 
Company's  trading  projects  had  no  other  result  tlian  a 
single  voyage  of  one  ship  in  1717,  and  that  its  prominence 
in  Brilisli  history  is  due  entirely  to  its  existence  as  a  purely 
monetary  corporation.  Notwithstanding  the  absence  of 
any  8}'niptom5  of  its  canning  out  its  great  trading  scheme, 


t6S 


niSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


ine 


the  Company  had  obtained  a  firm  hold  on  popular  favour, 
and  its  shares  rose  day  by  day ;  and  even  when  the  out 
break  of  war  with  Spain  in  1718  deprived  the  most  sanguine 
of  the  sUghtest  liope  of  sharing  in  the  treasures  of  the  Soui 
Seas,  the  Company  continued  to  flourish.     Far  from  bei 
alarmed  at  the  expected  and  impending  failure  of  a  simil. 
project — the  Mississippi  Scheme — the  South  Sea  Company 
believed  sincerely  in  the  feasibility  of  Law's  Scheme,  and  re- 
solved to  avoid  what  they  considered  as  his  errors.     Trust- 
ing to  the  possibility  of  pushing  credit  to  its  utmost  exten 
without  danger,  they  proposed,  :n  the  spring  of  1720,  t 
take  upon   themselves  the   whole   national  debt  (at  th 
time  ;^30,98i,7i2)   on  being  guaranteed  5  per  cent. 
annum  for  seven  and  a  half  years,  at  the  end  of  which  timq 
the  debt  might  be  redeemed  if  the  Government  chose,  an 
the  interest  reduced  to  4  per  cent.     The  directors  of  the 
hank  of  England,  jealous  of  tiie  prospective  benefit  an 
influence  which  would  thus  accrue  to  the  South  Sea  Co: 
pany,  submitted  to  Government  a  counter-proposal ;   bui 
the  more  dazzling  nature  of  their  rival's  offer  secured  it 
acceptance  by  Parliament — in  the  Commons  by  172  to  55J 
and   (April   7)  in  the   Lords    by  83   to    17;    Sir    Robert 
VValpole  in  the  former,  and  Lords  North  and  Grey,  the 
Duke  of  Uliarton  and  Earl  Cowper  in  the  latter,  in  vain 
protesting  against  it  as  involving  inevitable  ruin.     During 
the  passing  of  their  bill,  the  Company's  stock  rose  steadil 
to  330  on  April  7,*  falling  to  290  on  the  following  da 

*  On  Jauuary  I,  1720,  the  Daily  Courant^  and  olher  papers,  quot 
South  Sea  Slock  at  127J,  i2S|,  to  12S.    Ilank  150).    India  2cx>,  200J 
to  200.     The  quotation  for  Thursday,  April  7  (in  Daily  P<>st,  Friday," 
April  8),  is,  **  Yesterday  South  Sea  Stock  was  314.310,311,309,  3095, 
to  310.    Bank   145.     India  223."     On  the  27tli  May  it  was  555,  and^d 
Bank  was  205  {Past  Boy,  May  28).     It  then  fell  a  little,  but  in  thJIH 
Daiiy  Couraul  ofjunc  2  it  is  quoted  at  610  to  760,  Bank  210  to  22<\^^ 
India  290  to   300.     The  Daily  Post  of  Wednesday,  June  S,  conlntiu 
the  following  puff  for  the  scheme  :  *' *Tis  said  tlial    the   South  S< 
Company  being  wiUing^  to  have  all  the  Annuities  subscribed  to  lh( 


EARL  y  PART  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTUR  K        169 

TTp  till  this  dale  the  scheme  had  been  honestly  promoted ; 
but  now,  seeing  before  them  the  prospect  of  speedily 
amassing  abundant  wealth,  the  directors  threw  aside  all 
scruples,  and  made  use  of  every  effective  means  at  their 
command,  honest  or  dishonest,  to  keep  up  the  factitious 
value  of  the  stock.  Their  2ealous  endeavours  were  crowned 
with  success;  the  shares  were  quoted  at  550  on  May  28, 
and  890  on  June  i.  A  general  impression  having  by  this 
time  gained  ground  that  the  stock  had  reached  its  maxi- 
mum, so  many  holders  rushed  to  reaHse  that  the  price  fell 
to  630  on  June  3.  As  this  decline  did  not  suit  the  jjersonal 
interests  of  the  directors,  they  sent  agents  to  buy  up  eagerly; 
and  on  the  evening  of  June  3,  750  was  the  quoted  price. 
This  and  similar  artifices  were  employed  as  required,  and 
had  the  effect  of  ultimately  raising  the  shares  to  1000  in 
the  beginning  of  August,  when  the  chairman  of  the  Com- 
pany and  some  of  the  principal  directors  sold  out  On 
this  becoming  known,  a  widespread  uneasiness  seized  the 
holders  of  stock ;  every  one  was  eager  to  part  with  his 
shares,  and  on  September  12  they  fell  to  400,  in  spite  of  all 
the  attempts  of  the  directors  to  bolster  up  the  Company's 
credit.  The  consternation  of  those  who  had  been  either 
unable  or  unwilling  to  part  with  their  scrip  was  now 
extreme;    many    capitalists   absconded,    either    to   avoid 


Stock,  now  ofTcr  forty-five  years'  purchase  for  those  which  have  not 
ycl  I>ccn  bought  in."  And  again  :  "  Tlic  Annuities  which  have  been 
subscribed  iiUo  ihe  South  Sea  Stock  arc  risen  to  a  very  great  height, 
fto  that  what  would  forntcny  sell  but  forj^i5oo,  is  now  woilhj^Sooo." 
In  ihe /Iffj/ ^tyi  of  June  23-25,  we  find  this:  "Yesterday  South  Sea 
Stock  was  for  the  opening  of  the  Book  I  too.  1st  Subscr.  565,  2<1 
Sabscr.  610,  3rd  Snbscr.  20a.  Hank  2G5.  East  India  440."  On  Friday, 
June  24,the/?rMV>'  /W/says,  "  We  bear  that  South  Sea  Stock  was  sold 
yc&terday  al  1000  per  cent.,  and  great  wagers  arc  laid  that  it  will  be 
currcoUy  sold  Lwfore  the  ojjening  of  the  Books  at  1200  per  cent, 
exclusive  of  the  Dividend."  Ii  is  several  times  after  this  quoted  at 
Iioo,  but  never  over.  These  compilations  show  that  a  higher  rate  was 
attained  by  the  stock  than  is  given  in  the  article  quoted  above,  or  Is 
Ecncrally  IwIievetL 


m^ 


4B. 


170 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


ruinous  baukruptcy,  or  to  secure  iheir  ill-gotten  gains,  am 
the  Government  became  seriously  alanned  at  the  cxcitedl 
state  of  public  feeling.     Attempts  were  made  to  prevail  qxl\ 
the    Bank    to    come    to  the  rescue   by  circulating    sora< 
millions  of  Company's  bonds;  but  as  the  shares  still  d< 
clined,  and  tlie  Company's  chief  cashiers,  the  Sword  BIad« 
Company,  now  stopped    payment,   the    Bank  refused   t< 
entertain  the  proposal.     The  country  was  now  wound  a] 
to  a  most  alarming  pitch  of  excitement ;  the  punishment 
the  fraudulent  directors  was  clamorously  demanded,  an< 
Parliament  was   hastily  summoned  (December  8)  to  di 
liberate  on  the  best  means  of  mitigating  this  great  calamity.^ 
Both    Houses  proved,  however,  to  be  in  as  impetuous 
mood  as  the  public  ;  and  in  spite  of  the  moderate  counsel 
of  Walpolc,  it  was  resolved   (December  9)  to  punish  th« 
authors  of  the  national  distresses,  though  hitherto  no  fraudt 
lent  acts  had  been  proved  against  ihcm.     An  cxaminatioi 
of  the  proceedings  of    the    Company  was  at  once  coi 
menced  ;  and  on  Walpole's  proposal  nine  millions  of  Soutl 
Sea  bonds  were  taken  up  by  the  Bank,  and  a  similar  araouni 
by  the  East  India  Company.     The  officials  of  the  Coi 
pany  were    forbidden   to  leave  the   kingdom    for    tweli 
months,  or  to  dispose  of  any  of  their  property  or  effect! 
"Ultimately  various  schemes,  involving  the  deepest  fraud  an< 
villany,  were  discovered  to  have  been  secretly  concocte( 
and  carried  out  by  the  directors  ;  and  it  was  proved  thai 
the  Earl  of  Sunderland,  the  Duchess  of  Kendal,  the  CountC! 
Platen  and  her  two  nieces,  Mr  Craggs.  M.P.,  the  Company' 
secretar)',  Mr  Charles  Stanhope,  a  secretary  of  the  Trcasuryy 
and  the  Sword  Blade  Company,  had  been  bribed  to  promote' 
the  Company's  bill  in  Parliament  by  a  present  of  ^^i  70,000 
of  South  Sea  stock.     The  total  amount  of  fictitious  stock 
created    for    this  and  similar    purposes  was    ^1,260,000, 
nearly  one-half  of  which  had  been  disposed  of.     Equally 
flagrant  iniquity  in  the  allocation  of  shares  was  discovcredi 
in  which,  among  others,  Mr  Atslabie,  the  Chaucellor  oi 


BARL  y  PA  JIT  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTUR  K       1 71 

Exchequer,  was  implicated.  Of  these  offenders,  Mr  Stan- 
hope and  the  Earl  of  Sunderland  were  acquitted  through 
the  unworthy  partiality  of  the  Parliament ;  but  Mr  Aislabie, 
and  the  other  directors  who  were  members  of  the  House  of 
Commons,  were  expelled  \  most  of  the  directors  were 
discovered,  and  all  of  them  suffered  confiscation  of  their 
possessions.  The  chairman  was  allowed  to  retain  only 
j^5ooo  out  of  jf  183,000,  and  others  in  proportion  to  their 
share  in  the  fraudulent  transactions  of  the  Company.  At 
the  end  of  1720,  it  being  found  that  ^13,300,000  of  real 
stock  belonged  to  the  Company,  ;^8,ooo,ooo  of  this  was 
taken  and  divided  among  the  losers,  giving  them  a  dividend 
of  33^  per  cent. ;  and  by  other  schemes  of  adjustment  the 
pressure  was  so  fairly  and  wisely  distributed,  that  the 
excitement  gradually  subsided."  It  will  thus  be  seen  that 
the  South  Sea  Bubble  was,  after  all,  not  more  disastrous  in 
its  effects  than  many  modern  and  comparatively  unknown 
speculations. 

It  is  singular  that  the  South  Sea  Pmbblc  led  to  little — 
almost  nothing — in  the  way  of  advertisements.  When  we 
think  of  the  columns  which  now  herald  the  advent  of  any 
new  company,  or  for  the  matter  of  that,  any  new  idea  of  an 
old  company,  or  any  fresh  specific  or  article  of  clothing,  it 
seems  strange  that  at  a  time  when  the  art  of  advertising  was 
fast  becoming  fashionable,  no  invitations  to  subscribe  were 
published  in  any  of  the  daily  or  weekly  papers  that  then 
existed.  Just  before  the  consent  of  Parliament  was  ob- 
tained we  find  one  or  two  stray  advertisements  certainly, 
but  they  have  no  official  status,  as  may  be  judged  by  this, 
which  is  from  the  Post  Boy,  April  2-5,  1720 : — 

4,*4.  Some  Calculations  relating  to  the  Proposals  made  by  the  South 
Sea  Company  and  the  Bank  of  England,  to  the  Hou.sc  of  Commons ; 
Showing  the  loss  to  the  New  Sul>scri)xT>.  at  the  several  Kates  in  the 
said  Computations  mcntion'd ;  and  the  Gain  which  will  thereby  accrue 
to  the  Proprietors  of  the  Old  South  Sea  Slock.  By  a  Member  of  the 
House  of  Commons.     Sold  by  J.  Morphcw  near  Stationers  Hall. 


172  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 

Pr.  ts.     Where  may  be  obtained  Mr.  Hutchison's  Answer  to  Mr. 
Crookahank'i  Seasonable  Remarks. 

In  the  Daily  Conrani  of  April  4  is  also  the  following,, 
which  shows  the  immense  amount  of  the  stock  posscsse( 
by  private  individuals.    The  reward  offered  for  the  recovei 
of  the  warrant  seems  ridiculously  small,  let  its  value  b< 
what  it  might  to  the  finder: — 

Lost  or  mislaid,  a  South  Sea  Dividend  Warrant  No.  1343  dated  th«' 
■^  25th  of  February  last,  made  out  to  John  Powell  Ewj.  for  630/ 
being  for  his  Half  Years  Dividend  on  31,000/ stock  due  the  35th  of 
December  last.  If  offered  in  Payment  or  oihcrwi&e  please  to  stop  it 
and  give  Notice  to  Mr  Robert  Harris  at  tlie  South  Sea  House,  and 
you  shall  receive  los  Reward,  it  not  being  endorsed  by  tlie  said  Joho 
Powell  Esq.  is  of  no  use  but  to  the  Owner,  Payment  being  Stopt. 

The  only  official  notification  in  reference  to  the  Bubble 
is  found  in  the  London  Gazfttf^  "  published  by  authority,* 
of  April  5-9,  1720.  It  is  the  commencement  of  a  list  of 
Acts  passed  by  the  King,  and  runs  thus  : — 

WtsimiHSter^  Af^ril  7. 

HTS  Majesty  came  this  Day  to  the  House  of  Peers,  and  being  in 
hii  Royal  Rol>es  seated  on  the  Throne  with  the  usual  Solem- 
nity, Sir  William  Saundcrson,  Gcntlcman-Ushcr  of  the  Black 
Rod,  was  sent  with  a  Message  from  His  Majesty  to  the  House  of 
Commons,  commanding  their  Attendance  in  the  House  of  Peera ;  the 
Commons  being  come  thither  accordingly.  His  Majesty  waa  pleased  to 
give  the  Royal  Assent  to 

Ah  Act  for  ambling  tfu  South  Sea  Company  to  incnase  their  present 
Capital  Stock  and  Fund^  by  redeeming  such  ptiblick  Debts  and  Incum- 
hranees  as  are  therein  menthurd,  and  for  raising  Alunry  for  lessctttng 
several  of  the  public k  Debts  and  Incumbrances^  and  for  calling  iw  the 
presftit  Exchequer  Bills  remaining  uncanceUed,  and  for  making  fartJk 
new  Bilh  m  lieu  thereof  to  be  circulated  and  exchanged  upon  Demand 
or  near  the  Fxcheifuer. 


H 


The  advertisement  then  goes  on  to  state  what  other  Acts 
received  the  royal  assent,  but  with  none  of  theni  have  we 
anything  to  do.  In  the  Post  Boy  of  June  25-28  there  is  a 
notice  of  a  contract  being  lost,  which  runs  thus  : — 


EARL  y  PAR  T  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTUR  Y.       1 73 

^TTIfereas  a  Contract  for  the  ITclivcry  of  South  Sea  Stock  made 
'  '  between  WillLim  Byard  Grey,  E^q.  and  Mr.  William  Fcrroar 
is  cni&Iaid  or  dropi :  If  the  Pcrsrm  who  ia  possess 'd  of  it  will  bring 
it  to  ihc  Wheat-Sheaf  ia  Warwick-Lane,  he  shall  have  Tea  Guineas 
Reward,  and  no  Quci>tioiu  osk'd. 

And  in  the  issue  of  the  same  paper  for  June  30-JuIy  1 
we  find  this,  which  refers  to  tlie  Company  on  which  ail  the 
South  Sea  directors'  orders  were  made  payable  :— 

"C*Ound  at  the  South  Sea  House  Saturday  the  lyih  of  June  a  Sword- 
■^  Blade  Company's  Note.  If  the  Person  ihat  lost  it  will  apply  to 
Mr.  Colston's,  a  Toy  Shop  at  the  Flouxr  dc-Lucc  against  the  KKcItange 
in  Comhill,  and  describe  the  said  Note  shall  have  it  rctum'dj  paymg 
the  Ctiaqfc  of  the  Advertisement. 

These  are,  however,  only  incidental  advertisements,  which 
might  have  occurred  had  the  Company  been  anything  but 
that  which  it  was ;  and  so  we  have  only  to  remark  on  the 
peculiar  quietness  with  which  all  rigging  operations  were 
managed  in  those  days.  One  of  the  paragraphs  quoted 
in  a  note  a  short  distance  back  will,  however,  account  for 
the  fact  that  advertisements  were  not  found  in  the  usual 
places. 

The  growth  of  the  disgusting  system  which  permitted  of 
public  combats  between  women  is  exhibited  in  several 
advertisements  of  1722,  the  most  noticeable  among  them 
being  one  in  which  a  challenge  and  reply  are  published  as 
inducements  to  the  public  to  disburse  their  cash  and  wit- 
ness a  spectacle  which  must  have  made  many  a  strongman 
«ick:— 

CHALLENGE.— I.  Elizabeth  Wilkinson,  of  ClerkcnwcII,  having 
had  some  words  with  Hannah  Hylicld,  and  requiring  satisfaction, 
do  invite  her  to  meet  me  upun  the  stage,  and  box  me  for  three  guineas; 
each  woman  holding  half  a  crown  in  each  hand,  and  the  iwA  wumaa 
that  drops  the  money  to  loie  the  battle. 

Answer. — I,  Hannah  Hyficld,  of  Newgate  Market,  hearing  of  the 
resoluteness  of  EHzabcth  Wilkinson,  will  not  fail,  Goti  willing^  to  give 
her  more  blows  than  words,  desiring  home  blows,  and  from  her  no 
hvottr  J  she  may  expect  a  good  ilmmping  I 


"74 


mSTOR  Y  OF  ADVERTISING. 


The 


precaution  taken  with  the  half-crowns  to  keep 
hands  clenched  and  so  prevent  scratching,  shows  that  e 
these  degraded  creatures  had  not  quite  forgotten  the  pe< 
liarities  of  the  sex.     And  that  there  is  piety  in  pugih'sm — 
even  of  this  kind — is  proved  by  the  admittance  that  tb^^ 
Deity  had  to  give  his  consent  to  "  the  ladies'  battle."     Bt^| 
Mesdames  Wilkinson  and  Hyfield  sink  into  insignificance 
when  compared  with  the  heroines  of  the  following,  which  is 
cut  from  the  Daily  Post  of  July  17,  1 7  2  S : — 

AT  Mr.  Stoket  Ampkith^itre  in  Islington  Road,  this  present  Monday, 
•**-     being  the  7  of  October,   will  be  a  complete  Boxing  Match  by 
the  two  following  Championcsscs  : — Whereas  I,  Ann  Field,  of  Stoke 
Ncwington,  a&s-drivcr,  well  known  for  my  abilities  in  boxing  in  my  o 
defence  wherever  it  happened  in  my  way,  having  been  afTroitteO  by  M 
Stokes,  styled  the  European  Championcss,  do  fairly  invite  her  to  a  tri 
of  the  be&t  skill  in  lK>xing  for  10  pounds,  fair  ri&e  and  fall ;  and  qneati 
not  but  to  give  her  such  proofs  of  my  judgment  that  shall  oblige  her 
acknowledge  me  Champiouess  of  the  Stage,  to  the  entire  satis&clion 
all  my  friends. 

I,  Elizabeth  Stokes,  of  the  City  of  London,  have  not  fought  in  t 
way  since  I  fought  the  famous  boAng  woman  of  UillingF^gatc  29  minut 
and  gained  a  complele  victory  (which  is  six  years  ago] ;  but  aa  t 
famous  Stoke  Newington  ass-woman  dares  me  to  fight  her  for  the  t 
pounds,  I  do  assure  her  I  will  not  fail  meeling  her  for  the  said  sura, 
and  doubt  not  that  the  blows  which  I  shall  present  her  with  will  be 
more  difiicuU  for  her  to  digest,  tlian  any  she  ever  gave  her  asses.    Note. 
— A  man  known  by  the  name  of  Rugged  and  Tuff,  challenges  the  best 
man  of  Stoke  Newington  to  fight  him  for  one  guinea  to  what  sum  ihey 
please  to  venture.     jV./?. — Attendance  will  be  given  at  one,  and  the 
encounter  to  begin  at  four  precisely.    There  will  be  the  diversion  of 
cudgel -playing  as  usual. 


Pugilism  was  evidently  a  much  valued  accomplishme 
among  the  lower-class  ladies  in  1728,  and  there  is  no  dou 
that  Mrs  Stokes  and  Mrs  Field  were  considered  ve 
estimable  persons  as  well  as  great  athletes  in  their  respec- 
tive circles.  There  is,  moreover,  a  suspicion  of  humour 
about  the  reference  to  the  asses  in  the  reply  of  Mrs  Stokes. 
In  the  happily-named  Rugged  and  Tuflf  we  see  the  fore- 


I 


A 


'  an 
be 
sa 

en 


\AJPL  Y  PART  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY,       175 

ninner  of  that  line  of  champions  of  the  ring  which,  com- 
mencing witli  Figg  and  Broughton,  ran  unbroken  up  to 
comparatively  modem  days.  Other  advertisements  about 
Uiis  period  relate  to  cockmalches  and  mains,  sometimes 
ecified  to  **  last  the  week,"  to  bull-baiting  in  its  ordinary 
and  sometimes  in  it3  more  cruel  form  of  dressing  up  the 
beasts  with  fireworks,  so  as  to  excite  both  them  and  the 
savage  dogs  to  their  utmost.  Perhaps  brutality  was  never 
so  rampantf  or  affected  so  many  phases  of  society  as  it  did 
the  first  half  of  the  eighteenth  century.  Slavery  was 
considered  a  heaven-born  institution,  not  alone  as  regards 
coloured  races,  for  expeditions  to  the  Plantations  went  on 
merrily  and  afforded  excellent  opportunities  for  the  disposal 
of  any  one  who  happened  to  make  himself  objectionable 
by  word  or  deed,  or  even  by  his  very  existence.  The 
wicked  uncle  with  an  eye  on  the  family  property  had  a  very 
good  time  then,  and  the  rightful  heir  was  often  doomed  to 
a  slavery  almost  worse  than  death.  Apropos  of  slavery,  we 
may  as  well  quote  a  very  short  advertisement  which  shows 
how  the  home  trade  flourished  in  1728.  It  is  from  the 
Daiiy  Journal  of  September  28  : — 

TO  be  sold,  a  Negro  boy,  aged  eleven  years.    Enquire  of  the  Virginia 
,  Coffee-house  in  ThreadneetUe  street,  behind  llic  Royal  Exchange. 

^B  Negroes  had  in  T72S  become  quite  common  here,  and 
Hpad  pushed  out  their  predecessors,  the  Moors  and  Asiatics, 
PSirho  formerly  held  submissive  servitude.  This  was  pro- 
bably owing  to  the  nefarious  traffic  commenced  in  16S0  by 
Hawkins,  which  in  little  more  than  a  hundred  years  caused 
the  departure  from  their  African  homes  and  the  transplant- 
ing in  Jatnaica  alone  of  910,000  negroes,  to  say  nothing 
of  those  who  died  on  tlie  voyage,  or  who  found  their  way 
to  En.^land  and  other  countries. 


d 


CHAPTER    IX 

MIDDLE  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY, 

THE  further  we  advance  into  the  years  which  mark  the 
Hanoverian  succession,  the  more  profligate,  reckless, 
and  cruel  do  the  people  seem  to  become.  Public  exhibi- 
tions of  the  most  disgusting  character  are  every  day  adver- 
tised ;  ruffians  and  swaslibucklers  abound,  and  are  ready  to 
do  anything  for  a  consideration  ;  animals  are  tortured  at 
set  periods  i'or  the  delectation  of  the  multitude ;  and  we  sec 
verified,  by  means  of  the  notices  in  the  papers,  the  pecu- 
liarities wliich  Hogarth  seized  and  made  immortal,  and 
which  so  many  squeamish  people  consider  to  be  overdrawn 
nowadays.  Assignations  of  the  most  immoral  character  are 
openly  advertised,  and  men  of  the  time  may  well  have 
attempted  lo  ignore  the  existence  of  female  virtue.  A 
recent  writer,  commenting  on  this  state  of  affairs,  says,  in 
reference  to  the  latter  class  of  shameless  advertisements ; 
•'  We  are  far  from  saying  tliat  sucli  matters  are  not  managed 
now  through  the  medium  of  advertisements,  for  they  are, 
but  in  how  mucli  more  carefully  concealed  a  manner?  The 
perfect  contempt  of  public  opinion,  or  rather  the  public 
acquiescence  in  such  infringements  of  the  moral  law  which 
it  exhibits,  proves  the  general  state  of  morality  more  than 
the  infringements  themselves,  which  obtain  more  or  less  at 
all  times.  Two  of  the  causes  which  led  to  this  low  tone  of 
manners  with  respect  to  women  were  doubtless  the  detest- 
able profligacy  of  the  courts  of  the  two  first  Georges,  and 
the  very  defective  condition  of  the  existing  marriage  law. 


J 


MIDDLE  OF  EICIITEEN77r  CENTURY. 


177 


'illiam  and  Mary-,  and  Anne,  had,  by  their  decorous,  not 
say  frigid  lives,  redeemed  ihe  crown,  and  in  some  mca- 

ire  the  aristocraoy,  from  the  vices  of  the  Restoration. 

Jrown,  court,  and  quality,  however,  fell  into  a  still  worse 

lough  on  the  accession  of  the  Hanoverian  king,  who  soiled 
afresh  the  rising  tone  of  public  life  by  his  scandalous  con- 
nection with  the  Duchess  of  Kendal  and  the  Countess  of 
Darlington;  whilst  his  son  and  successor  was  absolutely 
abetted  in  his  vicious  courses  by  his  own  queen,  who  pro- 
moted his  commerce  with  his  two  mistresses,  the  Countesses 
of  Suffolk  and  Yarmouth.  The  degrading  influence  of  the 
royal  manners  was  well  seconded  by  tlie  condition  of  the 
law.  Keith's  Chapel  in  Mayfafr,  and  that  at  the  Fleet,  were 
the  Gretna  Greens  of  the  age,  where  children  could  get 
married  at  any  lime  of  the  day  or  night  for  a  cou)>le  of 
►crowns.  It  was  said  at  the  time  that  at  the  former  chapel 
six  thousand  persons  were  annually  married  in  this  offhand 
[way;  the  youngest  of  the  beautiful  Miss  Gunnings  was 
rdded  to  the  Duke  of  Hamilton  at  twelve  o'clock  at  night, 

ith  a  ring  off  the  bed-curtain,  at  this  very  'marriage-shop.* 
le  fruits  of  such  unions  may  be  imagined.  The  easy  way 
'in  which  the  marriage  bond  was  worn  and  broken  through, 
is  clearly  indicated  by  the  advertisements  which  absolutely 
crowd  the  public  journals,  from  the  accession  of  the  house 
of  Brunswick  up  to  the  time  of  the  third  George,  of  hus- 
bands warning  the  public  not  to  trust  their  runaway  wives." 
It  must  not  be  imagined,  though,  that  wives  were  the  only 
sinners,  or  that  vice  was  confined  to  any  particular  and 
exclusive  class.  It  was  tlie  luxury  of  all,  and  according 
to  their  opportunities  all  enjoyed  it. 
About  this  time  Fleet  marriages,  and  the  scandals  con- 

iquent  upon  them,  were  in  full  swing.     In  a  number  of  the 
'fevt/yyiji/rwa/ this  statement  is  made  :  "From  an  inspec- 
Bon  into  the  several  registers  for  marriages  kept  at  the 

;veral  alehouses,  brandy-shops,  &c.,  within  the  Rules  of 
the  Fleet  Prison,  we  find  no  less  than  thirty-two  couples 

M 


178 


HISTORY  OF  ADVER  TISING. 


I 


joined  together  from  Monday  to  Thursday  last  without 
licences,  contrary  to  an  express  Act  of  Parliament  against 
clandestine  marriages,  that  lays  a  severe  fine  of  ^200  on 
the  minister  so  offending,  and  £^100  each  on  the  persons 
so  married  in  contradiction  to  the  said  statute.  Several  of 
the  above-named  brandy-men  and  victuallers  keep  clergy- 
men in  their  houses  at  20s.  per  week,  hit  or  miss ;  but  it  is 
reported  that  one  there  will  stoop  to  no  such  low  conditions, 
hut  makes  at  least  ^500  per  annum  of  Divinity  jobs  after 
that  manner."  A  fair  specimen  of  the  kind  of  adverlu 
inent  published  by  these  gentlemen  is  this :— 


m3P 


GR.— At  the  True  Chapel,  at  the  old  Red  Hand  and  Mitre, 
•     doors  up  Fleet  I^nc,  and  next  door  to  the  White  Swan, 
mges  are  perfonned  by  authority  by  the  Rev.   Mr.  Symson,  educated 
flt  the  University  of  Cambridge,  and  late  chaplain  to  the  Earl  of 
Rothes. 
N,B* — "Without  imposition. 


i 


A  curious  phase  of  the  dangers  of  the  streets  is  found 
a  narralive  published  in  the  Grub  Sired  Journal  of  1735, 
which  is  well  worth  reproducing:  "Since  midsummer  last 
a  young  lady  of  birlh  and  fortune  was  deluded  and  forced 
from  her  friends,  and  by  the  assistance  of  a  wrynccked 
swearing  parson,  married  to  an  atheistical  wretch,  whose 
life  is  a  continued  practice  of  all  manner  of  vice  and  de- 
bauchery. And  since  the  ruin  of  my  relative,  another  lady 
of  my  acquaintance  had  like  to  have  been  trepanned  in  the 
following  manner :  This  lady  had  appointed  to  meet  1 
gentlewoman  at  the  Old  Playhouse  in  Drury  Lane,  but 
extraordinajy  business  prevented  her  coming.  Being  alone 
when  the  play  was  done,  she  bade  a  boy  call  a  coach  for 
the  city.  One  dressed  like  a  gentleman  helps  her  into  it, 
and  jumps  in  after  her.  *  Madam,*  says  he,  '  this  coach  was 
called  for  me,  and  since  the  weather  is  so  bad,  and  there  is 
other,  I  beg  leave  to  bear  you  company  j  I  am  going 
into  tl>c  City,  and  will  set  you  down  wherever  you  please.* 


MIDDLE  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CEKTURY 


'79 


The  lady  begged  to  be  excused,  but  he  bade  the  coachman 

k drive  on.  Being  come  to  I.udgate  Hill,  he  lold  her  his 
sister,  who  wailed  his  coming  but  five  doors  up  the  court, 
Irould  go  with  her  in  two  minutes.  He  went,  and  returned 
trith  his  pretended  sister,  who  asked  her  to  step  in  one 
minute,  and  she  would  wait  upon  her  in  the  coach.  The 
b  poor  lady  foolishly  followed  her  into  the  house,  when 
HiDstantly  the  sister  vanished,  and  a  tawny  fellow  in  a  black 
"  coat  and  a  black  wig  appeared.  *  Madam,  you  are  come 
in  good  time,  the  doctor  was  just  agoing  1'  '  The  doctor  !' 
says  she,  terribly  frighted,  fearing  it  was  a  madhouse ;  *  what 
has  the  doctor  to  do  with  me?*  *  To  marry  you  to  that 
gentleman.  The  doctor  has  waited  for  you  these  three 
hours,  and  will  be  paid  by  you  or  that  gentleman  before 
you  go!'  'That  gentleman/  says  she,  recovering  herself, 
*  is  worthy  a  better  fortune  than  mine;'  and  begged  hard 
to  be  gone.  But  Doctor  Wryneck  swore  she  should  be 
married ;  or  if  she  would  not  he  would  still  have  his  fee, 
and  register  the  marriage  for  that  night.  The  lady  finding 
she  could  not  escape  without  money  or  a  pledge,  told  them 
she  liked  the  gentleman  so  well  she  would  certainly  meet 
him  to-morrow  night,  and  gave  them  a  ring  as  a  pledge, 
*which,'  says  she,  *w3s  my  mother's  gift  on  her  deathbed, 
enjoining  that,  if  ever  I  married,  it  should  be  my  wedding 
ring;'  by  which  cunning  contrivance  she  was  delivered  from 
the  black  doctor  and  his  tawny  crew."  Pennant,  in  his 
*'Some  Account  of  London,"  says  :  "  In  walking  along  the 
street  in  my  youth,  on  the  side  next  the  prison,  I  have  often 
en  templed  by  the  question,  *  Sir,  will  you  be  pleased  to 
k  in  and  be  married  ? '  Along  this  most  lawless  space 
was  hung  up  the  frequent  sign  of  a  male  and  female  hand 
enjoined,  with  *  Marriages  performed  within'  written  beneatiL 
A  dirty  fcUow  invited  you  in.  The  parson  was  seen  walk- 
^_ing  before  his  shop;  a  squalid,  prolligate  figure,  clad  in  a 
^Blattered  plaid  nightgown,  with  a  fiery  face,  and  ready  to 
^^Couple  you  for  a  dram  of  gin  or  a  roll  of  tobacco."     Some 


iSo 


mSTOR  y  OF  ADVERTISIXC. 


■ 


of  the  notes  found  in  the  registers  purchased  by  Govei 
meat  in  iSat,  and  deposited  with  the  Registrar  of  the 
sistory  Court  of  London,  are  ver)-  amusing.  Here  are  oi 
or  X:9!o  extracts:  "June  lo,  1729.  John  Nelson,  of  yc" 
parish  of  St  George,  Hanover,  batchelor  and  gardener, 
and  Mary  Barnes,  of  ye  same,  sp.  married.  Cer.  dated  5 
November  1727,  to  please  their  parents."  "1742,  May 
24. — A  soldier  brought  a  barber  lo  the  Cock,  who  I  think 
said  his  name  was  James,  barber  by  trade,  was  in  part  mar- 
ried to  Elizabeth  :  they  said  ihey  were  married  enough." 
"  A  coachman  came,  and  was  half  married,  and  would  givi^| 

but  3s.  6d.,  and  went  off."     "Edward  and  Elizabct^^ 

were   married,   and   would  not  let  me   know   their 

names."  A  popular  error  was  current  at  this  time,  that  if  a 
newly-married  woman  ran  across  the  street  with  nothing  on 
but  her  shift,  she  would  free  her  husband  from  all  liability 
as  to  her  debts.  More  than  once  the  following,  or  words 
akin  to  it,  is  found  :  "The  woman  ran  across  Ludgate  Hill 
in  her  shift"  Riotous  persons  often  terrified  these  parsons, 
Buch  memoranda  as  the  following  occurring  now  and_ 
again :  "  Had  a  noise  for  four  hours  about  the  money. 
"Married  at  a  barber's  shop  one  Kerrils.  for  half  a  guinea? 
after  which  it  was  extorted  out  of  my  pocket,  and  for  fear 
of  my  life  delivered."  "  Harrowson  swore  most  bitterlj 
and  was  pleased  to  say  that  he  was  fully  determined  to  kil 
the  minister  that  married  him.  He  came  from  GravescD( 
and  was  sober."  And  so  on  through  infinite  variety.  Bi 
to  return  to  our  advertisements. 

Though  advertisements  were  by  no  means  scarce  about' 
this  time,  the  imposition  of  the  duly  still  told  heavily  with 
regard  to  the  regular  business  community,  for  in  regular 
trade  few  things  were   advertised  with   the   exception 
books  and  quack  medicines,  all  other  commercial  matt( 
being  disposed  of  by  means  of  agents  who  advertised  in 
general  manner,  of  which  the  following,  from  the  Lorn 
Journal  of  February  7,  1730,  is  a  fair  specimen : — 


I^IDDLE  OF  EIGIITUENTH  CES7UKY, 


iSi 


HE  Ptibiu  Gernral  Correspondence  0/ affairs, /pr  Imprirvlng 
MfneVt  Trade  and  Ettatrs,  He. 

Some  Persons  want  to  Buy  Estates  held  by  Lease  from  any 
Biihop,  Dean  nnd  Clupter|  or  College,  cither  for  Lives  or  Term  of 
Years. 

A  Person  desires  to  dispose  of  considerable  Sums  of  Money,  in 
•ach  manner  as  will  bring  him  in  the  best  interest,  the*  liable  to  some 
vn  certainty. 

A  Rer.  Clt-rgjrraan  is  willing  to  Exchange  a  Rectory  of  about 
/350  a  year,  in  a  pleasant  cheap  country,  for  a  Rectory  in  or  near 
Loudon,  iho'  of  1cm  value. 

Persons  who  want  to  raise  a  considerable  sum  of  money  on  Estates, 
Frexhold  or  For  Life,  may  be  served  therein,  and  in  such  a  manner 
u  not  to  be  obliged  to  rcpaymeiU,  if  they  do  not  see  fit. 
Estates  which  some  Pmons  vranl  to  Buy. 

Some  Freehold  Lands  not  far  ftom  Hertford. — An  Estate  from  ^200 
to  ttbout;^500  a  year,  within  60  miles  of  London. — A  lar^c  Estate  ia 
MUdlesex  or  Hertfordshire. — A  good  Farm  in  Sussex  or  Surrey. — And 
Icveral  persons  want  to  bay  and  some  to  hire  olher  estates. 
Estates  which  some  Persons  ivant  to  SELL. 

Sereral  good  Houses  in  and  about  London,  both  Freehold  and 
l^easchold. — A  very  good  house  for  a  Genllcman,  pleasantly  situated 
■Mr  Bury,  with  good  gardens,  etc.  and  some  e^tnie  in  land. — Several 
louses  fit  for  gentlemen  in  the  country,  within  20  miles  of  London, 
iomc  Willi  and  some  without  land.— And  several  persons  want  to  sell, 
and  w>me  to  let  other  estates. 

The  Particuiars  -will  he  giien  by  Mr  Themas  Rogers,  Agent  for  per- 
who  tvant  any  such  buiiticss  fo  Ar  doNe.     He  answers  letters  Post- 
id,  and   advettises  if  dtsireJ^   not  olhtru<isf,  All  at  his  own  ch.ii^e 

n^  suecessful. 

He  gives  Attendance  as  undennentioned: 

Daily  except  Saturdays  from  4  to  6  o'clocl(  at  home  in  Essex  Street, 
Ihcn  at  Rainbow  Coflcc-house,  by  the  Temple. 
At  13  >  Tuesday  at  Torn'*  Coffee-house,  by  the  Exchange. 
oVloclc  t  Thursday  at  Will's  CofTee-liouse,  near  Wiutehali^  ^^J 

And  on  sending  for  he  will  go  to  persona  near.  ^^^| 

B  The  next  advertisement  which  offers  itself  for  specml 
notice  is  of  a  somewhat  ludicrous  character,  and  shows  into 
what  straits  a  man  may  get  by  means  of  a  highly-developed 
imagination  and  an  indiscreet  tongue.     It  runs  thus : — 


iSa  HISTORY  OF  ADVERJJSING. 

Bristol^  Jixnuaiy  19.  J73|. 
ViniEREAS  on  or  about  the  loih  day  of  November  Ust  I  did 
'  *       say  in  the  Presence  of  Seveial  People,  That  Anjhonv  Coller, 
living  at  the  Sign  of  the  Ship  and  Dove  in  the  Pithay  in  Uristd,  w( 
svnt  to  Newgale  for  putting  Live  Toads  in  his  Beer,  in  order  to  fil 
it ;  I  do  solemnly  declare,  That  I  never  knew  any  such  Thing  to  hai 
been  done  by  the  said  Collcr  nor  do  I  believe  he  was  ever  guilty 
the  aforesaid  or  any  like  Practice;  I  am  therefore  heartily  sorry  ffl 
what  I  have  said  and  hereby  ask   Pardon  for  the  same  of  the  aboi 
said  Pcraon,  who,  I  fcaf,  has  been  greatly  injur'd   by  the  unguatxU 
Tung\ie  of  Joseph  Robins. 

To  this  curious  confession,  which  was  evidently  extorted 
from  the  imaginative  but  timid  Joseph,  four  witnesses  ap- 
pended their  names.  The  next  gentlemaa  to  whom  our 
attention  is  directed  was  still  more  unfortunate  than  MoJ 
Rubins,  for  he  received  pmiishment  without  having  conv^| 
mittcd  any  particular  otTence.  He,  however,  seems  to  have 
been  made  of  very  different  mettle  from  the  Bristol  man,  for 
he  is  anxious  to  try  his  chances  on  better  terms  with  those 
who  assaulted  him.  The  advertisement  is  from  the  Daiiy 
Post  of  January  23,  1739-40  : — 


\  1  rilEREAS  on  Saturday  the  I2th  instant  between  six  and  seven 
'  *       night,  a  gentleman  coming  along  the  north  side  of  Lincol 
Inn  fields  was  set  upon  by  three  persons  unknown  and  recciv'd  several 
blo%vs  before  he  conid  defend  himself,  upon  a  presumption,  as  they 
that  he  was  the  author  of  a  Satire  call'd  '*lhc  Satirist."    This  is  to  i 
form  lliem  that  ihey  are  greatly  mistaken,  and  that  the  insulted  pe: 
is  neither  the  author  uf  that  Satire  nor  of  any  Satire  or  Poem  whatcvci 
nor  knows  what  the  said  Satire  contains  :  and  therefore  has  reason  t 
expect,  if  they  arc  Gcnllcmcn,  that  ihey  will  not  refuse  him  a  meeting, 
by  a  line  to  A-  Z.,  to  be  left  at  llic  Bar  of  Dick's  CofTcc  House.  Tempi 
Bar,  in  order  to  make  him  such  atonement  as  shall  be  judged  rcasoi 
able  by  the  friend*  on  each  side  ;  otherwise  he  is  ready  to  give  any  o 
of  them,  singly,  the  sati)ifaclion  of  a  Gentleman,  when  and  wherev 
^^_^       thoU  be  appointed,  so  as  he  may  not  have  to  deal  with  Numbers. 

^^r  A.  Z.  must  have  been  possessed  of  a  considerable  amou 

r  of  faith  if  he  believed  that  the  rufflers  who  set  upon  him  u 

F  awatcs  would  consent  either  to  expose  themselves,  or  to  gi 

I  what  he  and  others  called,  in  a  thoughtless  manner,  **  the  sal 


] 


MIDDLE  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY,  183 

fiiction  of  a  gentleman.**  It  must  have  been  rare  satisfaction 
■t  any  time  to  be  run  through  the  body  or  sliot  through  the 
head,  after  having  been  insulted  or  injured.  In  the  London 
Daiiy  Post  and  Gentrai  AdvertiseTy^hor^Xy  dSltx  this  (February 
5i  i739~4o}>  ^s  ^^  advertisement  which  looks  suspiciously 
like  a  hoax,  unless,  indeed,  it  was  believed  at  the  time  that 
one  swallow  would  make  a  summer.  As  the  advertiser 
was  probably  devoted  to  the  agricultural  interest,  this  is  a 
not  unlikely  solution  of  the  problem,  more  especially  as  a 
caged  bird  would  naturally  not  be  expected  to  possess  the 
desired  power : — 

TF  any  person  will  deliver  a  Swallow,  Swift  (commonly  called  a 
*  Jack  Squeeler)  or  Martin,  alive  to  Mr  Thomas  Mcysey,  at  Hewd- 
ley  in  Worcestershire,  before  the  22d  day  of  this  instant  Fcbniary,  he 
doll  have  Ten  Guineas  Reward  paid  liiin,  and  all  reasonable  charges 
allowed  him  for  his  journey  by  the  said  Thomas  Meyscy :  Or  if  any 
person  will  deliver  either  of  the  said  birds  to  Mr  John  Tcrrins,  Dis- 
tiller, in  Butcher  Row,  London,  soon  enough  to  send  it  to  the  said 
Thomas  Meysey  at  Bewdley  l>eforc  ihe  22d  Instant  rcbruary,  and  the 
bird  shall  be  alive  when  delivered,  or  come  to  live  after  it  is  delivered 
to  the  said  Thomas  Meyscy,  he  shall  have  Ten  Guineas  Reward  paid 
bim,  and  all  reasonable  charges  allowed  him  by  the  said  John  Perrlns. 

These  birds  are  oftentimes  found  in  the  clifts  in  great  rocks,  old 
diimncys,  and  old  houses,  seemingly  dead  j  but  when  they  arc  put 
.before  a  fire,  they  will  come  to  life. 

//.B. — It  must  not  be  a  Swallow,  Swift  or  Martin  that  has  been  kept 
io  a  cage. 

There  must  have  been  much  capturing  of  small  birds,  and 
many  may  have  been  roasted  alive  in  attempts  to  preserve 
them  for  the  benefit  of  Thomas  Meysey.  It  certainly  does 
appear  as  if  about  this  time  humour  was  so  rife  that  it  had 
to  find  vent  in  all  sorts  of  strange  advertisements,  and  the 
quacks  were  not  slow  to  follow  the  lead  thus  set,  as  is  shown 
by  the  exercising  swindle  which  follows,  and  which  certainly 
must  have  exercised  the  minds  of  many  who  read  it  at  the 
time.  It  appears  in  the  same  paper  as  the  foregoing,  on 
March  7,  1739-40.  (It  is  almost  time  by  March  to  know 
what  year  one  is  in.) 


x84 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


I 

r 


FULLER  on  Exercise, 
(.4  Book  tvorth  reading ) 
^TOTHING  ought  to  be  thought  rUliculaus  that  caa  aflbrd  i 
■^  ^      ease  or  procure  health.     A  very  worthy  gentleman  not  long  ftgA 
had  such  an  odd  sort  of  a  cholick,  that  he  found  nothing  would  relieve 
him  50  much  as  lying  with  his  head  downwards;  which  posture  proVi 
always  so  advantageous  that  he  had  a  fr«Tnc  made  to  whtdi  he  himsc! 
was  fastened  with  llolis,  and  then  was  turned  head  downwards,  aft 
vhich  manner  he  hung  till  the  pain  went  off.     1  hope  none  will 
that  this  was  unbecoming  a  grave  and  wise  man,  to  make  use  of  such 
odd  means  to  get  rid  of  an  unsiipportable  pain.     If  people  would  but 
abstract  the  benefit  got  by  exercise  from  tlie  means  by  which  it  is  got, 
ihey  would  Rct  a  great  value  upon  it,  if  some  of  the  advantages  accruing 
frum  exercise  were  to  be  procured  by  any  other  medicine,  nothing  in 
the  world  would  be  in  more  esteem  than  that  Medicine. 

This  is  to  answer  some  olijections  to  the  book  of  tlic  Cliamber  Hoi 
(for  exercise)  invented  by  Henry  Marsh,  in  Oement's  Inn  Passage, 
Clare  Market ;  who,  it  is  well  known,  has  had  the  honour  to  serve 
tome  persons  of  the  greatest  distinction  in  the  Kingdom ;  and  he 
bum1>ly  begs  the  favour  of  Ladies  and  Gentlemen  to  try  both  tlie 
Chamber  Horses,  which  is  the  only  sure  way  of  having  ihe  beat  Thii 
machine  may  be  of  great  service  to  children. 

Mr  Marsh  may  have  been  clever  at  making  horses  for. 
chamber  use,  but  he  doesn't  seem  to  have  understood  argu 
ment  much  ;  for  whatever  pleasure  there  may  be  in  bolt- 
ing oneself  on  to  a  board,  and  then  standing  on  oiie*s  head, 
it  isn't  much  in  the  way  of  exercise,  even  though  Fuller  may 
have  been  at  the  bottom  of  it.  We  beg  his  pardon  on  it 
Still,  the  idea  is  ingenious,  and  in  a  population,  the  majority 
of  which,  we  are  informed,  consists  mainly  of  fools,  would 
succeed  now.  From  this  same  Lofuion  Daily  Post  and* 
General  Adtferiiser,  which  is  full  of  strange  and  startling 
announcements,  we  take  another  advertisement,  that  is 
likely  to  arouse  the  attention  and  excite  the  envy  of  all  who 
nowadays  suffer  from  those  dwellers  in  tents  and  other  forms 
of  bedsteads,  the  "  mahogany  flats  "  or  Norfolk  Howards, 
who  are  particularly  rapacious  in  lodgings  which  are  let  after 
a  long  temi  of  vacancy.  'I'liis  knowledge  is  the  result  of 
actual  experience.    The  date  is  March  15,  1740; — 


:in      i 


i 


iflDDLE  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY, 

MARY    SOUTH ALL 
Sttccestar  to  John  Southall,  tht  first  and  only  person  thai  ez'fr 


■8s 


fiund  ^it  tks  nature  of  BuGCS,  Author  of  the  Tmitise  of  {host 
ftttuifotts  venomous  fnjccts,  pubHshed  \otth  the  Approbation 
{and  for  which  he  had  the  honour  to  rteeixte  the  ttnanimouj 
Thankj)  of  the  Royal  Society, 

Gives  Notice, 

THAT  since  his  decease  she  hoih  followed  the  same  business,  and* 
lives  at  the  hoase  of  Mrs  Mary  Roundhftll,  in  Uearlane,  Christ 
Church  I^'ari&h,  Suuth^v-ar1c.  Suc)i  qualUy  and  gentry  as  are  troubled 
with  buij'gs,  and  arc  desirous  to  be  kept  free  from  those  vermin,  may 
IcDow,  on  sending  their  commands  to  her  lodgings  aforesaid^  when  she 
will  agree  with  them  on  easy  terms,  and  at  the  first  sight  will  justly  tell 
ihrni  which  of  their  beds  arc  infested,  &c.,  and  which  are  free,  and  what 
I  it  the  expense  of  clearing  the  infested  ones,  never  putting  any  one  to 
Store  exiicnsc  than  necessary. 

Persons  who  cannot  affnrd  to  pay  her  price,  and  is  willing  to  destroy 
theni  themselves,  may  by  sending  notice  to  her  phice  of  abode  afore- 
litid,  be  furnish'd  with  the  Non  Tareil  Li<juok,  &c.  &c. 


Bugs  are  said  to  have  been  very  little  if  at  all  known  in 
the  days  of  our  ancestors.  It  is  indeed  affirmed  in  that 
valuable  addition  to  zooIo^tt,  Southall's  "Treatise  of  Bii^s" 
'(London,  1730,  8vo),  referred  to  in  the  a<lvertisement  just 
quoted,  that  this  insect  was  scarcely  known  in  England  be- 
fore the  year  1670,  when  it  was  imported  among  the  timber 
used  in  rebuilding  the  city  of  London  after  the  fire  of  1666. 
That  it  was,  however,  known  much  earlier  is  not  to  be 
doubted,  though  probably  it  was  far  less  common  than  at 
present,  since  Dr  Thomas  ^tufTet,  in  the  "Tlieatrum  Insec- 
torum,"  informs  us  that  Dr  Penny,  one  of  the  early  compilers 
of  that  history  of  insects,  relates  his  having  been  sent  for  in 
great  haste  to  Mortlake  in  Surrey,  to  visit  two  noble  ladies 
who  imagined  themselves  seized  with  symptoms  of  the  plague; 
but  on  Penny's  demonstrating  to  them  the  true  cause  of 
their  complaint — viz.,  having  been  bitten  by  those  insects, 
and  even  detecting  them  in  their  presence — the  whole  affair 
was   turned  into   a  jest.     This  was  in  the  year  1583.     It 


at 

on 


iS6  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 

is  a  somewhat  remarVable  fact,  well  known  to  those  whose 
misfortunes  subject  them  to  contiguity  witli  these   highly- 
scented   bloodsuckers,  that  within  the  past  few  years  bug? 
have  altered  considerably.     The  okl,  nearly  round-belliei 
and  possibly  jovial  fellow,  has  given  way  to  a  long  danger- 
ous  creature  who  is  known  to  experts  as  the  "  omnibus  bug,' 
not  so  much  on  account  of  his  impartiality  as  because 
his  shape.     It  is  believed  by  some  that  this  change  is  the 
result  of  bugs  being  discontented  with  their  position,  an 
their  natural  (and  laudable)  attempt  to  become  somethin 
else  in  accordance  with  scientific  theory;  but  we  fancy  that 
the  true  reason  of  this  change  is  that  foreign  bugs  have 
been  imported  in  large  numbers  among  cargoes,  and  noi 
infrequently  about  passengers,  and  that  the  original  settle 
are  being  gradually  exterminated  in  a  manner  similar  to  that 
which  led  to  tlie  extirpation  of  the  black  rat  in  this  country, 
There  is  yet  another  theory  with  regard  to  the  change  which 
it  would  be  unfair  to  pass  over.     It  is  that  the  bugs  ha 
altered — it  is  admitted  on  all  sides  that  the  alteration  fi 
exhibited  itself  at  the  East  End  of  London — in  consequen 
of  feeding  on  mixed  and   barbarous  races  about  Ratclifii 
Highway  and  other  dock  purlieus.     Any  one  who  pays  hi 
money  for  this  book  is  at  liberty  to   take  his  choice 
hypotheses,  but   we   can   assure   him   that   the  change 
undoubtedly  matter  of  fact. 

The  -next  specimen  taken  is  of  a  literary  turn,  and  appe 
in  the  Champion,  or  the  Evening  Athirtiser,  of  January  a, 
1741.  From  it  we  may  judge  of  the  number  of  burlesques 
and  travesties  which,  some  large,  some  small,  were  called 
into  existence  by  the  publication  of  what  many  consider  to 
be  Richardson's  masteqViece.  Whatever  rank  "Pamela" 
may  hold  as  compared  with  "Clarissa  Harlowe,"  "Sir 
Charles  Grandison,"  and  other  works  by  the  same  author, 
it  is  very  little  regarded  now,  while  one  of  the  books  to 
which  it  gave  rise  is  now  a  representative  work  of  English 
literature.    Here  is  the  literary  advertisement  of  the  day ;— ^S 


I 


MIDDLE  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY,  187 

TXtf  Dt^  ispublisKd 

(Price  One  Shilling  and  Sixpence), 

AN  APOLOGY  for  the  LIFE  of  Mrs.  Shamkla  Andkews,  in 
*^  which  the  many  notorious  Falsehoods  and  Misrepresentations  of  a 
book  called  Pamela  are  all  cxpos'd  and  refuted ;  and  the  matchless 
Arts  of  that  young  Politician  set  in  a  true  and  just  light.  Together 
with  a  fall  Account  of  all  that  passed  between  her  and  Parson  Arthur 
WiUiami^  Those  character  is  represented  in  a  Manner  somewhat  differ- 
CQt  from  what  he  bears  in  Patneia^  the  whole  being  exact  Copies  of 
nthentick  lepers  delivered  to  the  Editor.  Necessary  to  be  had  in  all 
Families.  With  a  modem  Dedication  after  the  Manner  of  the  Auticnts, 
c^iecially  Cicero.    By  Mr.  Conny  K^yber, 

Printed  for  A.  Dodd,  at  the  Peacock  without  Temple  Bar, 
Where  may  be  had^  Price  i  j., 

1.  The  Court  Secret,  a  Melancholy  Truth.  Translated  from  the 
Original  Arabic.     By  an  Adept  in  the  Oriental  Tongues. 

Retnember  that  a  Princes  Secrets  are  Balm  conciaVd ; 
But  Poison  ifdiscovef'd.  — Massinger. 

AlsOy  Price  Ii., 

2.  A  Faithful  Narrative  of  tlic  Unfortunate  Adventures  of  Charles 
Oarttmi^ht^  M.D.,  who  in  his  voyage  to  Jamaica  was  taken  by  a 
Spanish  Privateer,  and  carried  into  St  Sebastians.  His  hard  usage 
there,  and  wonderful  Escape  from  thence,  &c.  &c. 

The  "  Court  Secret"  is  possibly  a  satire  on  the  evil  doings 
which  were  notorious  in  connection  with  high  places  at  that 
time,  but  which  happily  died  out  with  their  primary  causes  j 
and  the  other  book  is  doubtless  one  of  those  quaint  stories 
of  slavery  and  adventure  which  form  interesting  reading 
even  to  this  day.  Next  we  come  upon  an  advertisement 
which  oflfers  special  temptation  to  the  female  mind,  as  it 
combines  the  gratification  of  more  than  one  ruling  passion 
of  the  time.     It  is  from  the  General  Advertiser  of  April  27, 

1745  :— 

The  Interitretation  of 

Women's 

DREAMS, 

With  the  Prints  of  these  Dreams  finely  Engraved. 

If  a  Sm^  Woman  Dreams  the  i8ih  Dream,  it  tells  when  she*Il  be 

manied.    If  the  igih,  she  may  make  her  fortune. — The  35th  tells  what 

children  she  '11  have.    But  if  she  dreams  the  34th  Dream 


iSS 


mSTORY  OF  ADVERTlSmC. 


She  may  as  well  wed  Farinelli,  A!t  om 
^VitIl  a  curioQs  print  of  Farinelli  finely  cngnive<l. 
Plainly  shewing  lo  open  ami  clear  view,  etc 
The  42d  Dream  describes  the  man  she 's  !o  have,  and 
The  33d  tcUs  a  Wife  nlso  lo  Look  about  He», 
The  rest  of  the  Dreams  tell,  etc  etc.  clc 
To  which  is  added  A  LOTTERY 
For  Husbands  for  young  Maids, 
With  the  Piints  of  these  Husbands,  Finely  Enp^ved. 
Not  one  Blank,  but  ALL  Prir^,  the  Lfntvit  of  which 
Is  a  very  Hiindsome  and  Rich  Yohh^  Gentleman  thai  keeps  hU  CoACI 
— And  if  she  draws  of  the  6th  class  of  Ttcktts,  she  is  then  sure  to 
Mr  Lady. 
To  be  drawn  as  soon  as  full — And 
Any  Maiden  that  will  put  off  Two  Tickets,  shall  have  Onb  for 
Sef/to  put  her  in  Fortune's  way. 
'Tis  Given    Graiis  at   Mr  Burchell's  Anodyne   Keckla( 
Shop  in  Long  Acre,  Culler  and  Toyshop.     Tlie  sign  of  the  ca&e 
knives  next  shop  to  Drury  Lane, 

Where  on  the  counter  it  Joes  Ready  Lie 
For  All  who  7/  step  in_^r  V  ///  Passing  by. 

This   Mr   Burchell   of    the   Anodyne   Necklace  was 
notorious  quack  of  the  time,  to  whom  reference  is  m; 
further  on.     It  is  patent  to  the  most  casual  observer  that 
is  able  lo  dispose  his  wares  in  the  most  temptin"^  mann* 
and  the  book,  as  well  as  the  tickets,  must  have  had  a  vei 
good  sale  indeed.     Also  portraying  the  tastes  and  pecu- 
liarities of  this  portion    of  the  eighteenth  century  is  an 
inflation  taken  from  tlie   Gmeral  Adverfisfr  in  October 
1745,  which  displays  inordinate  vanity  on  the  part  of  the 
writer,  or,  to  put  it  in   the  mildest  form,  pecuharily  of  be-j 
haviour  on  that  of  the  lady  to  wliom  he  addresses  himself  :-^| 

"liniF.REAS  a  lady  last  Saturday  evening  at  the  playhouse  in 
*  •  Drury  Lane  in  one  of  ihc  left-hand  boxes,  was  observed  lo  take 
particular  notice  of  a  gentleman  who  sat  atxiut  liie  middle  of  the  pit, 
and  as  her  company  would  be  esteemed  the  greatest  favour,  she  ii 
humbly  desired  to  send  him  directions,  where  and  in  what  manner  she 
would  be  wailed  upon,  and  direct  the  said  letter  to  1>c  left  for  V.  M.  Z. 
at  Ihc  Portugal  Coffee  house  near  the  Exchange. 


OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY 


his  kind — many  of  the  most  barefaced,  and 
decidedly  indelicate  description — must  have 
source  of  income  to  the  proprietors  of  news- 
i)at  professions  of  adoration  for  unknown 
W  whom  were  presumably  married,  else  why 
nent  and  strategy  ? — did  not  fall  off  as  years 
;hown  by  the  following,  taken  from  a  wealth 
ind  in  the  commencement  of  174$.  It  is 
9€nerai  Advcrtistr  : — 

young  lady  was  at  Covent  Garden  playhouse  last 
rht,  and  received  a  blow  with  a  square  piece  of  wood 
le  lady  be  single  and  meet  mc  on  Sunday  at  two 
in  St  James's  Park,  or  send  a  line  directed  for 
ic*\  at  the  Sun  Tavern  at  St  Paul's  Churchyard, 
I  shall  wait  on  her,  to  inform  her  of  something  very 
{c  on  honourable  terms,  her  compliance  will  be  a 
:r  moit  obedient  lervant. 

igh  somewhat  rude  in  his  style,  and,  judg- 
scription  of  his  adventure  at  the  playhouse, 
n  his  manners,  is  noticeable  for  stipulating 
jfT  shall  be  single.  Let  us  hope  that,  if  his 
^honourable,  he  prospered  in  his  suit.  If  he 
rhaps  he  felt  consoled  by  the  knowledge  that 
a  reward, 

pVS. — The  Bloods  arc  desired  to  meet  together  at 
Bown  by  the  name  of  the  Sir  Hugh  Middlcton,  near 
fengion,  which  l\x  Skcggs  has  procured  for  that  day 
rtainoicnt  of  those  Gentlemen  who  agreed  to  meet  at 
Dinner  will  be  on  the  Table  puncttially  at  two  o'clock. 

iemcnt  just   given,  which   appears  in  the 

ff/r  for  January'  13,   1748,  is  one  of  the  rare 

fthing  relating  to  politics  in  advertisements. 

["when  political  significance  is  given  to  an 

when  party  dinners,  of  which  the  foregoing 

are  advertised.     The  Sir  Hugh  Middleton 

ice,  and  a  few  years  back,  when  Sadbr's 


/f/S7V^y  or  ADVERTJSJNG, 


Wells  was  llie  only  home  for  legitimacy  in  London, 
much  frequented  by  theatrical  stars  and  the  lesser  li( 
of  the  drama.  Comparatively  recently  a  music-hall  has 
been  added  to  the  establishment,  which,  however  profitable 
in  a  pecuniary  sense,  hardly  adds  to  the  reputation  of  thU 
well-known  and  once  suburban  tavern.  In  another 
liminary  notice,  which  appears  early  in  April,  attention) 
directed  to  another  part  of  the  town,  and  probably 
another  phase  of  political  and  party  existence.  It  is, 
the  others,  from  the  General  Advertiser ^  which  at  the  tim^ 
was  a  great  medium.  The  two  which  follow  it  are 
from  the  same  paper ; — 


thtt 

% 

time 

1 


HALF-MOON  TAVERN,  CHEAPSIDE.—S»ttirday  next,  the  _ 
April,  bcinp  Ihc  anniversary  of  the  Glorious  Battle  of  Catlodes, 
the  Stars  will  assemble  in  the  M(X>n  at  six  in  the  evening.  Thereforei 
the  choice  spirits  are  desired  to  make  their  appearance  and  fill  up  the  joy. 

It  is  not  hard  to  determine  the  sentiments  of  those 
who  then  called  Culloden  a  glorious  battle,  though  we 
should  think  there  are  few  nowadays  who,  whatever  their 
tastes  and  sympathies,  would  affix  the  adjective  to  a  victory 
which,  however  decisive,  was  marred  by  one  of  the  most 
disgraceful  and  cowardly  massacres  of  any  time.  But  the 
shame  still  rests  on  the  itiemory  of  that  man  who  was  truly 
a  butcher — a  butcher  of  the  defenceless,  but  an  impotent 
officer  and  arrant  coward  in  the  presence  of  armed  equality; 
and  so,  as  his  name  leaves  a  nasty  taste  in  the  mouth,  we 
will  pass  on  to  a  contemporary  card  put  forth  by  an  enter- 
prising tradesman  : — 

JOHN  WARD,  StavMaker. 

AT  the  Golden  Dove,  in  Hanover  Street,  Usng  Acre,  Makes  Tubby 
-  all  over  for  j^ I,  135.  od.,  for  large  sizes  ^^i,  i6s.  od. ;  licken  backs 
yjl,  7s.  od.,  for  large  sue*  two  or  three  shillings  advance,  with  the  very 
licsl  uf  goods  and  the  very  l»est  of  work  ;  neither  would  1  accept  a  ship- 
load of  the  Mcond-bcsl  buiic,  and  be  obliged  to  use  it,  to  deceive  people, 
nor  tabby  nor  tnmmiug.  I  am  willing  to  produce  receipts  in  a  court 
of  justice  for  tnbby,  bone,  &c,  and  be  entirely  diuinnulled  bu'ine&S| 
or  counted  on  impostor  and  a  deceiver,  if  I  act  contrary  to  what  I  pro* 


MIDDLE  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY. 


191 


po«e;  which  if  T  did  I  should  tie  guilty  of  nothing  but  deceit,  nor  nothing 
las  th<in  fraudj  and  so  don't  ought  to  be  allowed;  but  I  can  give  the 
direct  contrary  proofs ;  for  I  can  prove  I  have  liad  eighteen  measures 
at  a  time  by  me  since  Christmas,  for  people  as  I  have  made  for  several 
times  before,  and  all  the  winter  never  less  than  6vc  or  six  in  a  week, 
oftat  more,  all  old  customers;  and  in  consideration  its  all  for  ready 
money,  it  shows  a  prodigious  satisfaction.  I  buy  for  ready  money,  and 
that  commands  th«  bc&t  of  goods,  and  the  allowance  mftdc  in  considero- 
tioa  Lbctcof. 

Mr  Ward  speaks  like  a  conscientious  man,  but  so  do 
most  of  the  manufacturers  of  female  apparel — or  at  least 
ihcy  endeavour  to — who  advertise.  The  General  Adver^ 
iiseryivk^  staited  in  1745,  and  its  title  indicates  the  purpose 
for  which  it  was  intended.  It  was  "the  first  successful 
attempt  to  depend  for  support  upon  the  advertisements 
il  contained,  thereby  creating  a  new  era  in  the  newspaper 
press.  From  the  very  outset  its  columns  were  filled  with 
them,  between  fifty  and  sixty,  regularly  classified  and 
separated  by  rules,  appearing  in  each  publication ;  in  fact 
the  advertising  page  put  on  for  the  first  time  a  modern 
look.  The  departure  of  sliips  is  constantly  notified,  and 
the  engravings  of  these  old  high-pooped  vessels  sail  in  even 
line  down  the  column.  Trading  matters  have  at  last  got 
the  upper  hand.  You  see  *  a  pair  of  leather  bags/  *  a  scarlet 
heed  coat/  'a  sword/  still  inquired  after;  and  theatres 
make  a  show,  for  tliis  was  the  dawning  of  the  age  of  Foote, 
Macklin,  Garrick,  and  most  of  the  other  great  players  of  the 
ksl  century;  but,  comparaLively  speaking,  the  gaieties  and 
follies  of  the  town  ceased  gradually  from  this  time  to  pro- 
claim themselves  through  the  medium  of  advertisements.** 
The  great  earthquake  at  Lisbon  so  frightened  people  about 
this  time  that  a  law  was  passed  prohibiting  masquerades ; 
and  the  other  means  of  amusement,  the  china  auctions,  the 
rope-dancing,  the  puppet  shows,  and  the  public  breakfasts, 
became  scarcer  and  scarcer  as  a  new  generation  sprang  into 
being,  and  the  padded,  powdered,  and  patched  ladies  of 
high  descent  and  doubtful  reputation  faded  from  the  world 


IflSTORY  or  ADVERTISING, 


^ 


of  fashion.  This,  however,  was  a  work  of  time,  and  th< 
crop  of  noticeable  advertisements,  though  smaller,  is  stil 
sufficiently  large  for  the  purpose  of  making  extracts. 

Continuing,  then,  on  our  way,  we  do  not  travel  far  froi 
the  staymaker^s  announcement,  and  are  still  in  the  sanu 
month,  when  we  drop  upon  a  notice  which  requires  n< 
explanation,  so  well  does  it  apply  itself  to  the  minds 
those  whom  it  may  concern.     It  runs  thus  : — 

AIT"  HERE  AS  Ministcrsof  State  and  other  persons  in  power  are  often 
•  •  imporluiied  for  places  and  prcfcnncnts  which  are  not  In  their, 
disposal,  and  whereas  many  Gcnllemcn  waste  their  lives  and  fortunes  ii 
a  long  but  vain  dependance  on  the  Great  \  This  is  to  give  notice,  that  inj 
order  to  preserve  the  suitors,  on  the  one  hand,  fnim  such  disappoint- 
ments, and  the  vexation,  expense,  and  loss  of  time  with  which  they  are< 
attended  ;  and  men  in  power,  on  the  other,  from  being  solicited  on  mat- 
ters not  in  their  department  of  business  : 

Ac  No.  15.  one  pair  of  staiis,  in  the  KingVbench  Walk,  m  tbft) 
Temple,  gentlemen  at  an  easy  charge  may  be  informed  what  is  in  their] 
patrons*  power  to  bestow,  and  what  with  consistency  and  propriety' 
they  may  ask  for ;  (cither  civil,  ecclesiastical,  or  military,  l>y  land  orj 
aca,  together  with  the  business  of  each  employment,  salaries,  fees,  &c.)  ai 
also  by  what  methods  to  apply,  and  obtain  a  speedy  and  definite  answer. 

At  the  same  place  the  most  early  and  certain  intelligence  may  be  had 
of  the  vacancies  which  occur  in  all  public  offices.  Those  who  have  any 
business  to  transact  with  the  Government,  may  l)e  put  into  the  easiest 
and  readiest  way  to  accomplish  it,  and  those  who  have  places  to  dispoce 
of  may  depend  on  secrecy  and  always  hear  of  purchasers. 

N.B. — At  the  same  place,  accompls  depending  in  Chancery,  or  of 
any  other  kind,  arc  adjusted;  as  likewise  the  business  of  a  money 
scrivener  transacted,  in  buying  and  selling  estates,  lending  money  upoaj 
proper  securities,  and  proj^er  securities  to  be  had  for  money. 

This  agency,  if  properly  conducted,  must  have  been 
convenient  for  patrons  as  for  place  applicants,  and  doubt- 
less the  '*  ministers  of  State  and  other  persons  in  power' 
must  often  have  been  astonished  to  discover  what  powei 
they  really  possessed,  which  discovery  would  never  havi 
been  made  had  it  not  been  for  the  services  of  the  gentle-.] 
man  up  one  pair  of  stairs. 

In  January  1752,  the  widow  Gatcsfield  discovered  th( 


MIDDLE  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY, 


193 


adwntage  likely  to  accrue  from  the  quotation  in  an  adver- 
tisenient  of  any  independent  testimony,  no  matter  how 
leniotc,  and  so  being  anxious  to  acquaint  the  public  with 
the  superiority  of  the  silver  spurs,  for  fighting  cocks,  manu- 
factured at  her  establishment,  she  concluded  her  announce- 
ment in  the  Daily  Advertiser  as  follows : — 

W  Mr  Galcsficld  wan  frtcn<l  ajifl  successor  to  the  laic  Mr  Smith 
mentioned  in  Mr  Uallam's  ingenious  pocni  called  the  C&cker^ 
p.  58. 

As  curious  artists  different  skill  disclose, 
The  various  weapon  different  temper  shows; 
Now  curving  points  to  soft  a  temper  bear, 
And  now  to  hard  their  brittlcness  declare. 
Now  on  tlic  plain  the  treach'rous  weapons  lyc. 
Now  wing'd  in  air  the  shivcr'd  fragraenla  fly : 
Sorpris'd,  cliagrin'd,  the  others  gaxe, 
And  SuiTH  alone  ingenious  artist  praise. 

The  following,  which  appears  about  the  same  time,  is  of  a 
rather  doubtful  order.  It  is  inserted  in  the  General  Adi'er^ 
tiser  of  January  6,  1752,  and  seems  to  be  an  attempt  to 
renew  a  friendship  broken  off  by  some  frolicsome  fair 
ones  at  the  sacrifice  of  as  little  dignity  as  possible.  The 
advertiser  certainly  seems  to  know  a  good  deal  about  the 
missing  ladies : — 

WHEREAS  two  young  ladies  of  graceful  figure,  delicate  turned 
limbs  and  noble  aspect,  lately  absenting  themselves  from  their 
admirers,  are  suspected  maliciuu&Iy  to  have  sent  an  cx]:ensive  Paclcct, 
containing  four  indecent  Words  in  various  Languages  to  a  gentleman 
near  Hanover  Square  :  Tliis  is  to  give  notice  whosoever  shall  induce 
these  ladies  to  surrender  ihemeelves  to  that  gentleman,  shall  receive  a 
suitable  reward.    The  ladies  may  depend  on  the  gentleman's  discretion. 


The  tender  honour  of  the  fine  gentlemen  of  sixscore 
years  ago  is  admirably  shown  by  the  next  two  public 
announcements,  the  first  of  which  appears  in  the  General 
Advertiser  for  January  13,  1752  : — 

K 


same  paper  with  the  addition  of  some 

"TAU  RING  the  performance  on  Saturday  nig| 
*-^    house,  a  dispute  was  carried  to  a  great  1« 
und  a  gentleman  unknown  ;  hut  on  the  strangef 
or  his  erroff  and  making  public  submission  and 
tion,  it  was  amicably  terminated. 

Mr  V n  was  evidently  very  anxioi 

should  know  he  had  bome  himself  bd 
gentleman,  even  at  the  risk  of  bloodshe] 
would  have  endeavoured  to  get  his  a( 
another  portion  of  the  paper,  and  "  Jenkir 
leaded  type  would  doubtless  have  be€ 
requisition. 

The  Gefifral  Advetiiser  seems  to  have 
for  affairs  of  gallanlry,  for  just  at  this  p 
annexed  : — 

A  TALL,  well-fash  ion  M,  handsome  young  wot 
with  a  6nc  bloom  in  her  countenance,  a  cast 
scarcely  di^ccmablc  ;  a  wcU-tnmeU  nose,  and  dark 
flowing  about  her  neck,  which  seemed  to  l»e  ncv 
new  year's  day  about  three  o'clock  in  the  aftcmooi 
Long  acre,  and  near  the  turn  into  Drury  Lans 
man.  wraonM  ud 


MIDDLE  OF  EIGHTEEN! tJ  CENTURY, 


«9S 


date  it  ceruinly  iloes  not  matter  much  which,  except  for 
the  purpose  of  discovering  probable  fresh  peculiarities 
among  our  very  pecuhar  ancestors.  That  more  than  one 
cunning  tradesman  began  about  now  to  understand  the 
full  value  of  judicious  puffer)',  is  well  shown  by  the  follow- 
ing ingenious  adveriisemeni,  in  the  form  of  a  letter  to  the 
editor  of  the  General  Advertiser^  of  January  19,  1752, 
which  is  a  good  specimen  of  that  disinterested  friendship 
which  people  always  have  for  themselves  : — 

Sir, 

Your  inserting  this  in  your   paper  will  be  of  great  service  to  the 
pDblic,  and  very  much  oblige, 

Your  huxntilc  servant,  £.  G. 

Thai  Mr  Parsons,  staymaker  at  the  Golden  Acorn,  James  Street, 
Covent  Garden,  makes  stays  for  thoae  that  are  crooked,  in  a  perfect 
easy  pleasant  manner  :  so  that  the  wearer  is  as  easy  in  them,  ttiough 
trer  so  crooked,  as  the  straitest  woman  living-,  and  appears  so  strait 
and  easy  a  shape  that  it  is  not  to  be  perceived  by  the  most  intimate 
icqiiainianccs.  As  to  misses  that  arc  crooked  or  inclined  to  be  so,  either 
by  fall,  sickness,  etc.,  he  always  prevents  their  growing  worse,  itnd  haa 
often  with  his  care  and  judgment,  in  particular  methods  he  has  in  mak- 
ti:^  their  coats  and  stays,  brought  ihera  intircly  strait,  which  I  can 
attest,  if  required,  by  several  which  were  infants  at  my  boarding  School 
and  arc  now  good-shap*d  women.  I  have  often  persuaded  Mr  Parsona 
to  let  this  be  published  in  the  Papers,  for  the  good  of  my  sex,  for 
what  would  not  any  gentlewoman  give,  who  haa  this  misforlunep 
cither  in  themselves  or  their  children,  to  know  of  a  man  that  can  make 
them  appear  strait  and  easy,  and  their  cliildren  made  strait  or  preserved 
from  growing  worse.  But  his  answer  was  that  he  did  not  like  it  to  be  in 
the  Papers  ;  and  not  only  that,  but  the  Public  might  think  he  worked 
only  for  those  who  have  the  misfortune  of  being  crook'd.  But  certainly 
in  oiine,  and  every  thinking  person's  opinion,  as  he  is  so  ingenious  to 
make  such  vast  additions  to  a  bad  shape,  he  must  and  can  add  some 
beauties  to  a  good  one  by  making  a  genteel  stay.  He  has  been  in 
business  for  himself  to  my  knowledge  26  years  ;  consequently  has,  and 
does  work,  for  genteel  shapes  as  well  as  bad.  t  have  several  fine-shaped 
misses  in  my  School  that  lie  works  for,  whose  parents  always  give  me 
thanks  for  recommending  him,  and  arc  pleased  to  say  that  he  makes 
the  gcnteelest  stays,  robes,  or  coats  they  ever  saw ;  and  I  doubt  not,  but 
every  one  that  employs  him  will  say  the  same. 

Sir,  as  the  publishing  this  in  the  Papers  (which  I  acknowledge  was 


196 


NJ STORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


first  without  your  consent),  has  been  of  such  universal  service,  iherefa 
I  desire  you  'II  permit  the  continuance  of  it,  for  I  sincerely  do  it  for 
good  of  my  sex,  knowing  whoever  applies  to  yott  wiU  receive  gi 
benefit  thereby. 

Elizabeth  GARDtNSK. 

Mrs  Gardiner  seems  to  have  known  just  as  much  aboi 
Mr  Parsons  as  Mr  Parsons  knew  about  himself,  or  at 
events  as  mucli  as  he  cared  to  Jet  other  people  knot 
Very  different  is  the  next  selection,  which  goes  to  shoi 
that  however  unfashionable  a  thing  love  at  first  sight  may 
now,  it  had  some  claims  to  consideration  in  1752,  from  tl 
Daily  Advertiser  of  March  30,  in  which  year,  this  is  taken  :- 

T  F  the  young  gentleman  who  came  into  the  Oratorio  last  \Vedoes<1j 
^     and  by  irresistible  address  gained  a  place  for  the  lady  he  attends 
is  yet  at  liberty,  Sylvia  may  still  be  happy.     But,  alas  t  her  mind 
racked  when  ihe  reflects  on  all  the  tender  anxiety  he  discovered  (or 
fears  she  saw)  in  all  his   care  of  her  that  evening.     How  much,  h< 
deep  wa-«  all  his  attcution  engaged  by  that  loo  lovely,  loo  happy  fairj 
At  alt  events  an  inter^'iew  is  earnestly  sought,  even  if  it  be  10  talk 
me  of  etcrn-illy  lasting  sorrow.     Notice  how  to  direct  to  him  shall 
want  gratitude.     He  may  remember  a  circumstance  of  a  lady's  mi 
tionirg  as  he  passed  the  sentimental  look  and  sweetness  of  his  eye. 

There  is  just  a  suspicion  of  humbug  about  this,  unless^ 
indeed,  it  emanated  from  an  amorous  dame  of  the  Lady 
Bellaston  school,  for  no  young  lady  of  even  those  days 
would  have  penned  such  an  effusion.  Of  quite  a  different 
kind  is  the  following,  and  yet  there  is  a  covert  satire  upon  the 
doings  of  the  day  in  it,  which  suggests  a  relationship.  It  is 
not  impossible  that  bolh  tliis,  which  is  from  the  Daily 
Advertiser  of  October  27,  1752,  and  that  which  precedes  i^ 
emanate  from  the  same  source  : — 

^^h  An  Address  to  tht  GENTLEMEN. 

^^^         ^ ENTLEMENf — It  is  well  known  that  many  of  you  spare  neither 

I  ^-^     pains  nor  cost  when  in  pursuit  of  a  Woman  you  have  a  mind  to 


ruin,  or  when  attached  to  one  already  undone.  But  I  don't  remember 
to  have  heard  of  any  considerable  benevolence  conferred  by  any  of  you 
upon  a  virtuou-s  Woman:  I  therefore  take  this  method  to  let  you  know, 
that  if  there  should  be  any  among  you  who  have  a  desire  to  assist  (with 


i 


M/DDt£  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY. 


197 


a  rtwrM^rroii^  present)  an  agreeable  Woman,  for  no  other  reason  than 
becatue  she  wanU  U,  sach  Person  or  Persons  (if  such  there  be\  may  by 
giving  their  Address  in  this  Paper,  be  iaformed  of  an  occasion  to  excr- 
cite  their  disinterested  Genero:atty.  * 

There  seems  to  have  been  no  hurry  on  the  part  of  the 
gentlemen  to  respond  to  this  appeal,  which  might  have 
fUrred  the  heart  of  a  knight-errant,  but  which  had  no  effect 
oa  the  bloods  and  fribbles  of  the  middle  of  last  century.  In 
this  year  1752^  as  previously  noticed,  the  Act  was  passed  for- 
bUdiDg  a  notification  of  "  no  questions  asked"  in  advertising 
lost  orslolen  property.*  The  Edinburgh  C?;//-<7/// of  October 
28,  1758,  supplies  us  with  our  next  example,  and  also  shows 

W^^t  the  course  of  true  love  was  as  uneven  then  as  now  ;— 
^^r  Glasgow,  Octob,  23,  1758. 

E  Robert  M'Nair  and  Jean  Holmes  having  taken  into  con- 
sideration the  way  and  manner  our  daughter  Jean  acted  in  her 
Karriage,  that  the  took  none  of  our  advice,  nor  advised  us  before  she 
Buried,  for  which  reason  we  discharged  her  from  our  Fanitly,  for  more 
llun  Twelve  Months ;  and  being  afiaid  that  fiome  or  other  uf  our  Family 
nay  also  presume  to  marry  without  duly  advising  us  thereof.  We,  taking 
the  affair  into  our  serious  con^sideratton,  hereby  discharge  all -and  every 
ooe  of  our  Children  from  offering  to  marry  williout  our  special  advice 
ind  consent  6r^t  had  and  obtained  ;  and  if  any  of  our  Children  should 
propose  or  presume  to  offer  Marriage  to  any,  without  as  aforesaid  our 
adrice  and  consent,  they  in  that  case  shall  be  banished  from  our  Family 
Twelve  Months,  and  if  they  should  go  so  far  ai  to  marry  without  our 
advice  and  consent,  in  that  case  they  are  to  be  banished  from  the  Family 
Seven  Years ;  but  whoever  advises  us  of  their  intention  to  marry  and 
obtains  our  consent,  shall  not  only  remain  Children  of  the  Family,  but 
aU«  UuiU  have  a  due  proportion  of  ourXioods,  Gear,  and  Estate,  as  we 
dudl  think  convenient,  and  as  the  bargain  requires  ;  and  further  if  any 


I         Tliis  Act  seems  to  have  been  forgotten,  or  capable  of  evasion,  for 
l^balute  of  the   7  &  8  Geo.  IV.,  c.  29,  s.  59,  imposes  a  penalty  on 
^^^  person  who  >hall  advectise,  or  print,  or  publish  an  advertisement  of 
*  a.  reward  for  the  return  of  properly  stolen  or  lost,  with  words  purport- 
ing that  no  questions  shall  be  asked,  or  promising  to  pawnbrokers  or 
others  ihe  return  of  money  which  may  have  Iwea   lent  upon  objects 
fciooiouiily  acquired. 


193 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


one  of  our  Children  shall  marry  clandestinely,  they,  by  so  doing,  shUlJ 
lo&e  all  claim  or  title  to  our  EFTccts,  Goods,  Gear  ur  Estate  ;  and  wi 
inltmaie  this  to  all  concerned,  that  none  may  pretend  tgnuioiicc 

There  is  something  original  about  discharging  a  member" 
of  one's  family  for  twelve  months  or  seven  years,  and  then 
taking  her  back  again  ;  and  so  there  is  in  the  idea  that  all 
members  of  this  same  house  are  not  only  over-anxious  to' 
marry,  but  that  they  are  unduly  sought  after.  The  farailyi 
must  have  been,  indeed,  a  large  one  to  necessitate  notifica- 
tion througli  the  public  press;  and  though  our  ignorancej 
may  be  lamentable,  we  must  confess  to  not  knowing  whyi 
Mrs  M'Nair  declined  to  call  herself  by  her  husband's  name, 
Wc  presume — nay^  we  hope — that  Robert  and  Jean  did' 
not  upon  principle  object  to  wedlock,  though  the  adver* 
tisement,  coupled  with  the  fact  of  the  dissimilarity  of  names, 
might  lead  any  one  to  suppose  so.  Marriage  was  much 
tltought  of  in  1758,  so  far  as  advertisers  are  concerned,  as 
the  following,  culled  from  many  of  the  same  kind,  which 
now  began  to  appear  in  tlie  Daily  AdveriUer^  will 
show  : — 


A  PERSON  of  character,  candour  and  honour,  who  has  an  entire 
'  ■**-     knowledge  of  the  World,  and  ha.*  great  Intimacy  with  both  Sexes 

I  among  the  Nohility,  Gentry  and  Persons  0/  Credit  and  Reputation;  and 

I  as  it  often  happens^  that   many  deserring  Persons  of  both  Sexes  arc 

I  deprived  of  tlie  opportunity  of  cnlering  into  the  state  of  Mntnniony, 

^  by  being  unacquainted  with  the  merit  of  each  other,  therefore  upon 

directing  a  letter  to  A.   Z.  of  any  one's  inlention  of  entering  into  the 

t  above  State,  to  the  advantage  of  each,  to  be  left  at  Mr  Perry's,  Miller's 
Court,  Aldermanbury,  Secrecy  and  Honour  will  be  obser\'ed  in  bringinu 
to  a  Conclusion  such  their  Intention.  Any  Person  who  shall  send  a 
Letter,  is  desired  to  order  the  bearer  to  put  it  into  the  Letter-box  for  fear 
it  may  be  mi&laid  :  and  it  is  desired  that  none  but  those  who  ora 
^ccrc  would  make  any  application  on  the  above  subject. 


That  people  were,  however,  quite  capable  of  conducting 
their  own  little  amours  whenever  a  chance  offered,  the  foU 
lowing,  which  is  another  of  the  love-at-fitst-sight  effusions, 


Ol 


MIDDLE  OF  EtCHTEENTH  CENTURY. 


199 


and  a  gem  in  its  way,  will  show.     It  is  from  the  London 
CA/vwwV  of  August  5,  1758  ; — 


A  Young  Lady  who  was  at  VauxhaU  on  Thursday  night  last,  in 
**■  company  with  iwo  Gentlemen,  could  not  but  observe  a  young 
Gentleman  in  blue  and  a  gold  laceU  hat,  who,  being  near  her  by  Oie 
Orchestra  during  the  perrormance,  especially  the  last  song,  gazed  upon 
bcr  with  the  utmost  attention.  He  earnestly  hopes  (if  unmarTied)  she 
irill  favonr  bim  with  a  line  directed  lo  A.  D.  at  the  bar  of  the  Temple 
Eschnnge  CoRee-house,  Temple  bar,  lo  inform  him  whether  Foitune, 
Family,  and  Character,  may  not  entitle  him,  upon  a  further  knowledge,  lo 
hope  an  interest  in  her  Heart.  lie  begs  s-he  will  pardon  ihe  method  he 
has  taken  to  let  her  know  the  situation  of  his  Mind,  a»,beinga  Stranger, 
he  despaired  of  doing  it  any  other  way,  or  even  of  seeing  her  more. 
As  his  views  are  founded  upon  the  must  honourable  Fnnciples,  he  pre- 
sumes to  hope  the  occasion  will  justify  it,  if  she  generously  breaks 
through  this  trifling  formality  of  the  Sex,  rather  than,  by  a  cruel 
Silence,  render  unliappy  one,  who  must  ever  cacpcct  to  continue  so,  if 
debarred  from  a  nearer  acquaintance  with  her,  in  whose  power  alone 
it  is  to  complete  his  Felidt/. 


This  goes  to  prove  what  we  have  before  remarked, 
that  the  concocters  of  these  advertisements  were  in 
the  habit  of  falling  in  love  with  the  women  whom 
they  saw  with  other  men;  and  so  it  is  only  natural 
to  suppose,  that  however  honourable  they  may  have  pro- 
tested themselves  in  print,  they  were  in  reality  mean, 
cowardly,  and  contemptible.  The  well-known  Kitty  Fisher 
finds  the  utility  of  advertising  as  a  means  of  clearing  her 
character,  and  in  the  Public  Advertiser  of  March  30,  1759, 
puts  forth  the  following  petition,  which  had  little  effect  upon 
her  persecutors,  as  the  little  scribblers  continued,  as  little 
scribblers  will  even  nowadays,  and  "  scurvy  malevolence  " 
also  held  sway  over  Iier  destinies  for  a  considerable  period  : — 


'T'O  err  is  a  blemish  entailed  upon  Mortality,  and  Indiscretions  seldom 

■*■      or  ever  escape  from  Censure  ;  the  more  heavy  as  the  Character 

U  more  remarkable  ;  and  doubled,  nay  trebled,  by  the  World,  if  the 

progress  of  that  Character  is  marked  by  Success  ;  then  Malice  shoots 


Tintshops,  and  to  wind  op  the  whole,  some ' 
and  venal,  would   impose   upon  (he  Public  b] 
publt&h   her   Memoirs.     She  hopes  to   prevent 
endeavours  by  thus  ]ntblicly  declaring  that  not 
fctighlest  foundalion  in  Truth. 

We  have  already  referred  to  an  arti< 
Johnson,  in  an  Idler  oi  I7S9,  on  the  sul 
ments.  It  is  ver)*  amusing,  and  in  it  he] 
ever  is  common  is  despised.  Advertisei 
numerous  that  they  are  very  neghgently 
therefore  become  necessary  to  gain  attei 
cence  of  promises,  and  by  eloquence  sot 
and  sometimes  pathetic"  He  then  passe 
of  the  most  inflated  pufls  of  that  period, 
*'  Promise,  large  promise,  is  the  soul  of  ai 
I  remember  a  washball  that  had  a  quality  t 
it  gave  an  exquisite  edge  to  the  razor.  An 
to  be  sold,  for  ready  money  only,  some 
coverings,  of  down,  beyond  comparison  su 
called  ottar  down,  and  indeed  such,  that 
lences  cannot  be  here  set  forth.  With  or 
are  made  acquainted  —  it  is  warmer. 
blankpK   and  \\o\\\ 


MIDDLE  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY.  aoi 

tnd  the  affection  with  which  he  warned  every  mother,  that 
ihe  would  never  forgive  herself  if  her  infant  should  perish 
witliout  a  necklace.    I  cannot  but  remark  to  the  celebrated 
anther,  who  gave,  in  his  notifications  of  the  camel  and 
dromedary,  so  many  specimens  of  the  genuine  sublime, 
that  there  is  now  arrived  another  subject  yet  more  worthy 
of  his  pen — A  famous  Mohawk  Indian  warrior,  who  took 
Dieskaw,  the  French  general,  prisoner,  dressed  in  the  same 
manner  with  the  native  Indians  when  they  go  to  war,  with 
his  &ce  and  body  painted,  with  his  scalping  knife,  tom-axe, 
and  all  other  implements  of  war!     A  sight  worthy  the 
curiosity  of  every  true  Briton !     This  is  a  very  powerful 
description :  but  a  critic  of  great  refinement  would  say  that 
it  conveys  rather  horror  than  terror.     An  Indian,  dressed 
as  he  goes  to  war,  may  bring  company  together ;  but  if  he 
carries  the  scalping  knife  and  tom-axe,  there  are  many  true 
Britons  that  will  never  be  persuaded  to  see  him  but  through 
a  grate.     It  has  been  remarked  by  the  severer  judges,  that 
the  salutary  sorrow  of  tragic  scenes  is  too  soon  effaced  by  the 
merriment  of  the  epilogue :  the  same  inconvenience  arises 
from   the   improper  disposition  of  advertisements.      The 
noblest  objects  may  be  so  associated  as  to  be  made  ridi- 
culous.    The  camel  and  dromedary  themselves  might  have 
lost  much  of  their   dignity  between   the   true   flower  of 
mustard  and  the  original  Daffy's  Klixir;  and  I  could  not 
but  feel  some  indignation  when  I  found  this  illustrious 
Indian  warrior  immediately  succeeded  by  a  fresh  parcel  of 
Dublin  butter.     The  trade  of  advertising  is  now  so  near  to 
perfection,  that  it  is  not  easy  to  propose  any  improvement. 
But  as  every  art  ouglit  to  be  exercised  in  due  subordination 
to  the  public  good,  I  cannot  but  propose  it  as  a  moral 
question  to  these  masters  of  the  public  ear,  Whether  they 
do  not  sometimes  play  too  wantonly  with  our  passions?  as 
when  the  registrar  of  lottery  tickets  invites  us  to  his  shop 
by  an  account  of  the  prizes  which  he  sold  last  year ;  and 
whether  the  advertising  controversists    do    not   indulge 


203  inSlVR  Y  OF  AD  VER  TISING. 

asperity  of  language  without  any  adequate  provocation? 
in  the  dispute   about  strops  for  razors,  now  happily  su 
sided,  and  in  the  altercation  which  at  present  subsists  coni 
ceming  Eau  de  Luce.    In  an  advertisement  it  is  ailowed 
every  man  to  speak  well  of  himself,  but  I  know  not  why  H 
should  assume  the  privilege  of  censuring  his  neighboiu; 
He  may  proclaim  his  own  virtue  or  skill,  but  ought  not  to 
I  exclude  others  from  the  same  pretensions.     Every  man  lb 

advertises  his  own  excellence  should  write  with  some  co 
,  sciousness  of  a  character  which  dares  to  call  the  attentio; 

\  of  the  public.     Ho  should  remember  that  his  name  is  t 

I  stand  in  the  same  paper  with  those  of  the  King  of  Prussia 

and  the  Emperor  of  Germany,  and  endeavour  to  make  him- 
I  self  worthy  of  sucli  association.     Some  regard  is  likewise 

to  be  paid  to  posterity.     There  are  men  of  diligence  and 
f  curiosity  who  treasure  up  the  papers  of  the  day  merely 

f  because  others  neglect  them,   and    in   lime   they  will   be 

scarce.     When  these  collections  shall  be  read  in  another 
I  century,  how  will  numberless  contradictions  be  reconciled; 

I  and   how  shall  fame  be  possibly  distributed   among  the 

I  tailors  and  bodice-makers  of  the  present  age?"     Judging 

I  by  the  advertisements  which  continued,  the  worthy  adver- 

I  tisers  of  1759  had  a  very  poor  opinion  of  men  yet  to  come, 

\  and  might  have  asked,  had  they  thought  of  it,  with  the  Irish 

I  member,  "What's  posterity  ever  done  for  us?" — a  que 

I  which  would  have  puzzled  even  Dr  Johnson. 

I  The  sliort-sleeved  dresses  of  1760  must  have  called  f( 

all  kinds  of  apparatus  for  whitening  and  beautifying  ih 
arms,  and  among  many  a  kindred  and  attractive  advertise 
ment  of  the  time  we  take  the  following  from  ihe  Chronidt 
of  April  X9-21 : — 


sh 


Clovtt  for  ladies. 
'HP  HE  tnie  prepared  French  Chicken  and  Dog-skin  Gloves,  for  clemi 
-^       ing  and  whitening  the  hands  and  arms,  perfumed  and  plain.     A 
SAme  ladies  Imvc  h.-id  hut  smnll  confidence  in  these  Gloves,  till  tin 
have  been  prevailed  upou  to  wear  one  Glove  for  eight  or  ten  Ni^hl 


ill 


MIDDLE  OF  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY.  203 

vlioi  they  Hare  e  vidently  seen  to  their  agreeable  satisfaction  that  hand 
tod  ann  brought  f  o  such  a  superior  degree  of  whiteness  over  the  other, 
u  tbooeh  they  d'.d  not  belong  to  the  same  Person. 

The  abore  Gioves  are  prepared  and  sold  only  by  Warren  &  Co., 
Rnfiimeis,  at  the  Golden  Fleece,  in  Marybone  Street,  Golden  Square, 
M5a.  a  pair,  who  import,  make  and  sell,  all  sorts  of  perfumery  Goods, 
ii  the  utmost  perfection.  The  Violet-Cream  Pomatum,  and  cele- 
toled  quintessence  of  Lavender,'  by  no  other  person. 

9f  Ladies  soiding  their  servants  arc  humbly  desired  to  send  a  Glove 
of  the  size. 

iV.f  .— Just  landed,  a  fine  parcel  of  the  famous  India  Pearl. 

*«*  The  Queen's  Royal  Marble,  at  2Qs.,  and  Chinese  Imperial  Wash 
Ul,  at  5s.,  that  are  so  well  known  to  the  Nobility,  &c.  Ladies'  Masks 
ad  Tippets. 

All  thb  effort  at  decoration  and  beautifying  is  very  wrong, 
bat  we  are  stopped  in  our  desire  to  "  improve  the  occa- 
«on"  by  the  recollection  that  no  age  has  been  more  deep  in 
the  mysteries  of  cosmetic,  enamel,  pearl  powder,  and  paint 
than  our  own,  in  which  quacks  abound,  and  old  ladies  have 
been  known  to  submit  themselves  to  the  operation  of  being 
made  beautifuli  not  for  all  time,  but  for  ever.  A  little 
further  on,  in  the  Eventng  Post,  we  come  upon  an  ambi- 
tious author  who  has  attempted  to  regenerate  the  drama,  \ 
and  who  advertises  his  work.  Shakespeare  seems  always 
to  have  been  considered  capable  of  improvement  by  some- 
body, but  as  the  mania  for  touching  the  immortal  bard  up, 
and  making  him  respectable  and  fit  for  the  understandings 
of  small  tradesmen,  still  goes  on,  and  fortunes  are  made  at 
it,  we  will  give  the  following  without  comment,  lest  some 
original  author  of  the  present  day  might  think  we  were 
obliquely  alluding  to  him  : — 

In  t hi:  press  and  shortly  will  be  published 

THE  Students,  a  Comedy,  altered  from  Shakespeare's  Love's  Labour 
Lost,  and  adapted  to  the  stage,  with  an  original  Prologue  and 
Epilogue. 

Printed  for  Thomas  Hope,  opposite  the  north  gate  of  the  Royal 
Exchange,  Threadneedle  St. 

Deserters  are  plentiful  about  this  period,  our  soldiers, 


[ornier.     The  following  is  from  Lh 
April  26-28,  and  is  a  fair  specimen  ol 

Dtserted 

FROM  the  l6th  Regiment  of  Dragoons,  Cl 
WILLIAM  BEVENI 
Aged  16  years,  about  five  feci  five  inches  hi( 
he  walks,  nnd  but  very  indifferenlly  made  ;  abi 
Quarters  last  Saturday  night,  the  17th  instant ;] 
the  parish  of  the  //ays,  in  the  County  of  ilrcck| 
■  labourer;  he  went  away  vnth  a  li^ht  horse 
frock  faced  with  black,  a  striped  fl2.nnel  waistcoa 
breeches. 

Whoever  apprehends  and  secures  the  above  \ 
be  committed  Id  any  of  His  Majesty's  gaols, 
George  Ross,  Esq.,  Agent  to  the  regiment 
London,  receive  twenty  Shillings,  over  and  al 
by  Act  of  Parliamc!n^ 

Those  who  are  in  the  habit  of  exprcs 
to  the  decadence  of  the  British  soldier, 
human  being  generally,  will  do  well  tc 
advertisement,  and  judge  from  it  the  diff 
defenders  of  hearths  and  homes  of  the 
with  all  his  want  of  size  and 


CHAPTER    X. 

TUB  EDUCATION  COMPLETED. 

SO  far,  as  has  been  shown,  advertisements  have  had 
to  struggle  against  foreign  war,  internecine  disorder, 
the  poverty  of  the  State,  and  many  other  drawbacks; 
but  by  the  commencement  of  the  seventh  decade  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  these  difficulties  have  all  in  turn  been 
surmounted,  and  the  most  modem  means  of  obtaining 
publicity,  despite  prejudice,  and,  still  worse,  taxation,  is 
fixed  finnly  in  the  land,  and  doing  much  towards  the 
management  of  its  affairs.  The  country  is  at  peace  with 
the  world,  so  far  as  Europe  is  concerned ;  and  even  the 
Canadian  campaign  is  as  good  as  over.  Clive  has  made 
himself  felt  and  the  name  of  England  feared  throughout 
the  length  and  breadth  of  India,  and  merchants  are  begin- 
ning to  reap  the  advantages  of  conquest.  George  III.  has 
ascended  the  throne,  has  been  married  and  crowned,  and 
looks  forward  to  a  long  and  prosperous  reign.  In  fact, 
everything  seems  bright  and  smiling,  for  never,  through 
many  a  long  year,  was  the  country  so  free  from  troubles 
and  anxieties,  or  with  so  little  to  direct  her  attention  from 
those  two  great  essentials  to  English  existence — profit  and 
pleasure.  And  so,  as  marked  in  the  preceding  chapter, 
advertisements  of  all  kinds  progressed  as  the  century 
became  older;  and  when  the  ordinary  style  failed,  dodges 
of  all  kinds  were  adopted  to  give  a  factitious  importance  to 
announcements,  no  matter  whether  of  quacks,  of  publishers, 
or  of  the  infinite  variety  of  other  trades  and  professions 
which  just  now  began   to  be   bitten  by  the  fast-growing 


ine  MiDiscercu  :>iaie/ 
the  altar  of  Halifax  the  characters  of  all  p| 
from  Budeigli  to  Hute,  and  the  attempt  to  fc 
the  wrath  of  the  Revieiv^  which  comment 
"  As  the  practice  of  puffing  is  now  arriv] 
height  of  assurance,  it  will  not  be  improper 
occasionally  to  mark  some  of  the  gross< 
may  occur  of  this  kind."     Thereupon  It  n< 
paragraph,"  to  which  we  have  already  rei 
within  brackets  being  the  comments  of  the 

A  noble  Peer  has  absolutely  given  directions  to  hi 
inence  a  Prosecution  a^^ainsl  Lite  Author  uf  the  Poem  c 
of  Siatf^  a  Satire^  as  a  most  licentious  and  libellous  i 
writer,  no  doubt,  merits  a  severer  censure  of  the  L( 
brethren,  becanse  instead  of  employing  those  ^ai/  /a 
iatire/or  wkkh  hi  is  so  daervtdty  cMtbrattd  [what  di 
for  his  effrontery  ?]  in  the  service  of  Virtue  and  hi 
hasety  [basely  enough  !]  prostituted  ihcm  to  the  un 
defaming,  lampooning  and  abusing  some  of  the  grc 
this  Kingdom.  [All  a  puff  to  excite  curiosity.] 
LITERARY  LUMINARY  of  the  age  [this  illiterate 
should  pay  a  greater  deference  to  the  words  of  hi 
Pope  : 

"  Curs'd  be  the  verse,  how  smooth  soe'er  it  f 

fWe  doubt,  however,  if  ani 


7BE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED. 


ao7 


and  is  of  a  literary  character  also,  though,  judging  by  the 
motto  adopted,  the  work  is  more  likely  to  produce  melan- 
choly than  amusement :  — 

This  day  are  putiltshed,  Price  rs., 

THE  Songs  of  Stlraa,  atlempled  in  English  verse,  from  Ihe  original 
of  Osftian,  the  son  of  Fingal Quii  tatia  fando  J'eni- 

fnd  a  lacrymUT  ....  Printed  for  R.  Griffiths,  opposite 
Somerset  House  in  the  Strand  ;  C.  Henderson,  at  the  Royal  Exchange; 
tod  G.  Woodfftll,  Charing  Cross. 

How  many  books  of  this  kind  have  been  published, 
thrown  aside,  and  forgotten,  or  consigned  to  the  pastry- 
cook and  trunkmakerj  since  the  **  Songs  of  Selraa"  saw  the 
light,  is  a  question  easier  to  ask  than  to  solve.  One  thing 
i$,  though,  certain — the  number  of  people  who  will  write, 
whether  they  have  anything  to  say  or  not,  increases  every 
year,  and  in  due  course  we  may  expect  an  ingenious 
Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer  to  impose  a  lax  on  authors; 
which,  after  all,  will  hardly,  bo  far  as  brilliancy  is  concerned, 
be  so  destructive  as  the  window-tax,  or  so  uncalled  for  as 
Mr  Robert  Lowe's  famous  "  ex  luce  lucellum  "  imposition. 
A  couple  of  weeks  later,  in  the  same  paper  (January  18-20), 
is  the  following  of  a  ver)'  different  character  from  that  which 
has  been  already  selected  : — 

READING  MACHINE 

IS  removed  from  the  Three  Kings,  Piccadilly,  to  the  George  Inn, 
Snow  Hill,  London  ;  sets  out  from  the  Broad  Faff ,  Rfading^  every 
Monday,  Wednesday,  and  Friday,  at  seven  o'clock  in  (he  mominj;,  nnd 
Prom  the  George  Inn,  Sntntt  //i//,  every  Tuesday,  Thursday,  and  Satur- 
day* at  seven  o'clock  in  the  morning ;  carries  passengers  to  and  from 
Raiding  at  6s.  each,  children  in  lap,  and  outside  passengers  at  3s. 

Performed  by  *  '^''^^^^  ^^''^'^  "'^ 


Richard  Mapleton. 

NJ?. — Takes  no  charge  of  Writings,  Money,  Watches,  or  Jewel% 
imlc«s  entered  and  paid  for  as  such. 

This  machine  was  evidently  a  nondescript,  partly  slow 
coach,  partly  waggon,  and  was  extremely  reasonable  in  its 
tales  if  it  journeyed  at  any  pace,  seeing  that  outside 
passengers  paid  no  more  than  present  Parliamentary  rates, 


3o8 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


while  the  inskles  had  no  occasion  to  complain  of  excessii 
expenditure.  But  fancy  the  journey  at  seven  o'clock  on 
January  morning,  with  the  knowledge  that  no  brisk  moti< 
would  keep  the  blood  in  circulation,  that  the  roads  were' 
heavy,  the  weathcrindififerent,  the  society  worse,  the  conver- 
sation, if  any,  very  heavy,  and  the  purse  proportionally  light! 
Such  a  company  as  Roderick  Random  and  Strap  fell  in 
with  in  the  waggon,  must  often  have  been  seen  on  the 
outside  of  the  Reading  Machine.  In  the  same  paper  of 
January  20-22,  we  find  the  advertisement  of  a  pamphlet 
issued  for  the  gratification  of  a  morbid  taste  which  has  its 
representative  nowadays  —  though,  by  the  way,  there  is 
more  excuse  for  a  little  excitement  over  murder  and  execu- 
tion now  than  there  was  in  the  days  when  every  week  saw 
its  batch  of  criminals  led  forth  to  take  their  final  dance 
upon  nothing : — 

This  day  was  published,  price  is., 

SOME  Authentic  particulars  of  the  life  of  John  Macnaghlon,  Esq., 
of  Ben ^  who  was  executed  in  Ireland,  on  luesday  the  25ih 

d.-iy  of  Dccrmbcr,  for  the  Murder  of  Miss  Mary  Anne  Knox,  the  only 
daughter  of  Andrew  Knox,  Esq.,  of  Prehcn,  representative  in  the 
late  and  present  Pr.rliamcnt  for  the  county  of  Donegal.  Wiih  a  fuU 
account  of  his  pretended  Connexion  with  the  young  Lndy  ;  of  tl 
measures  he  took  to  seize  her  person  previous  to  the  Murder  ; 
circumstances  of  that  fact ;  the  manner  of  his  being  apprchendc 
and  his  conduct  and  behaviour  froni  that  time  till  his  Death.  Campilt 
from  papers  communicated  by  a  gentleman  in  Ireland,  to  a  person 
distinction  of  that  Kingdom  now  residing  here. 

Printed  for  IL  Payne  &  W.  Croply,  at  Dryden's  Head  in  Pate 
noster  Row. 

John  Macnaghton,  Esq.,  was  a  real  gentleman  criminaV 
and  though  food  for  the  halter  was  plenty  in  1762  and 
thereabouts,  gentlemen  were  ** tucked  up"  still  more  rarely 
than  within  ordinary  recollections  ;  for  stern  as  was  the  law 
a  hundred  years  ago,  it  had  very  merciful  consideration  for 
persons  of  quality,  and  the  hanging'  of  a  landed  pro- 
prietor for  a  mere  paltry  murder  was  a  very  noticeable  event. 
In  the  London  Gazette  of  February  23-:J7,  we  6nd  a  record 


k. 


THE  EDUCATION  COMT'LETED. 


209 


of  the  coronation  of  their  illustrious  and  sacred  MajestieS| 
George  and  Charlotte^  which  runs  thus : — 

Albemarlk  St.,  Feby.  26,  1762. 
'T^HE  Gold  Mcdalii  inleaded  for  the  Peers  and  Peeresses  who  in  ihcir 
-^  robc»  sittcnded  at  the  Coronalion  of  their  Majesties  (according  10 
B  liil  obtained  from  the  proper  officers)  \(-ilI  be  delivered  at  the  £arl  of 
Powls's  house  in  Albemarle  Street,  on  Wednesday  and  Thursday  next, 
Irocn  ten  10  twelve  o'clock  each  day. 

It  is  therefore  desired  that  the  Peers  and  Peeresses,  as  above  men- 
tionedf  will  Knd  for  their  Medals ;  and  that  the  persons  who  shall  be 
cent  for  them  shall  bring  Cards,  signed  by  such  Peers  or  Peeresses,  as 
ibe  Medals  shall  be  required  for»  and  scaled  with  their  Anna. 

In  the  same  paper  we  come  upon  the  advertisement  of  a 
book  which  is  even  now  read  with  interest,  tliough  the 
price  at  which  a  modem  issue  of  it  is  offered  is  ludicrously 
small  compared  with  that  of  the  original  edition  : — 

'X*niS  day  is  published,  in  small  quarto,  Price  Thirty  Shilling^ 
•^  Printed  at  Strawberry  Hill,  Anecdotes  of  Painting  in  England, 
with  incidental  Notes  on  other  Arts.  Collected  by  the  late  Mr  George 
Vertne,  and  now  first  digested  and  published  from  his  original  Manu- 
scripts. By  Mr  ^[orace  Walpole.  Vol.  I.  and  H.  With  alx)ve  forty 
Copper  plates,  four  of  which  arc  taken  from  anttcnt  Paintings  ;  tlte 
rest,  heads  of  Artists,  engraved  by  Grignionj  Mailer,  Chambers,  and 
Banoerman. 

To  be  had  of  W.  Bathoc,  Bookseller,  in  the  Strand,  near  Exeter 
Exchange. 

As  we  have  no  wish  whatever  to  paint  the  !ily,  we  will, 
although  the  subject  is  a  kindred  one,  leave  Horace  Wal- 
pole's  book  without  a  fresh  criticism  to  add  to  the  thousand 
and  odd  already  passed  upon  it,  and  will  pass  on  to  the  land 
"where  the  men  are  all  brave  and  liie  women  all  beautiful," 
and  where,  in  Faulkner's  DubUn  JoumaJ,  also  of  February 
1762,  we  come  upon  the  cry  of  a  young  man  for  his  mother. 
Id  the  advertisement  is  the  nucleus  of  a  story  quite  equal  10 
"Tom  Jones,"  provided,  of  course,  that  its  author  possessed 
the  fancy  of  a  Fielding.  We  are  not  aware  of  any  literary 
gentleman  who  would  succeed,  though  we  are  acquainted 
with  plenty  who  would  most  confidently  make  the  attempt ; 

o 


a 


s 


aio  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 

their  only  doubt,  if  doubt  possessed  them  at  all,  bein 
in  ihcir  own  iiowers,  but  in  the  discernment  of  the  re 
public.  To  them,  therefore,  we  present  ihe  groundwo 
a  story  which  would  naturally  enlist  the  s)'mpathi 
England  and  Ireland.  A  little  might  also  be  thrown 
the  benefit  of  Scotland,  which  would  hardly  like  to  be] 
out  of  so  fascinating  a  romance : —  j 

^ITHEREAS  a  lady  who  called  hcr-elf  a  native  of  Ireland  wi 
■  '  England  in  the  year  1740,  and  resided  some  time  at  a  cei 
village  near  Bnth,  wlicre  she  was  delivered  of  a  son,  whom  i. 
with  a  sum  of  money  under  the  care  of  a  person  in  the  same 
and  promised  to  fetch  him  at  a  certain  age,  but  has  not  since  I 
heard  of;  now  this  is  to  desire  the  lady,  if  living,  and  this  shouli 
so  fortunate  as  to  be  seen  by  her,  to  send  a  letter,  directed  to  T.  | 
be  left  at  the  Chapter  Coffee  house,  St  PauPs  Churchyard,  Lon( 
wherein  she  is  desired  to  give  an  account  of  herself,  and  her  re4 
for  concealing  this  afljiir :  or  if  the  lofly  should  be  dcat1,  and  any  M 
is  privy  to  the  affair,  they  arc  lilcewise  desired  to  direct  as  af 
H.B.  This  advertisement  is  publishe<l  by  Ihe  person  himself,  not 
motives  of  necessity,  or  to  court  any  assistance  (he  being,  by  a 
happy  circumstances,  possessed  of  an  easy  and  independent  fa 
but  with  a  real  dettirc  to  know  his  origin. — P.^  The  strictest 
may  Ijc  depended  00, 

Foundlings   seem  to  have   been   better  off  a  hui 

years  ago  than  now,  for  in  all  stories  they  come  out 
well,  and  in  this  present  instance  T.  E.  seems  to  have 
able  to  help  himself.  It  is  not  unlikely,  however,  that 
sharp  adventurer,  knowing  how  weak  is  human  nature, 
hit  upon  the  expedient  of  attracting  maternal  sjanpathw 
Bath  was  a  great  place  at  tliat  lime  for  interesting  in 
— with  a  view  to  a  system  of  extortion.  This  may,  or 
not  be,  and  at  this  dLstance  of  time  it  is  useless  to  sj 
late.  Accordingly  we  turn  once  more  to  the  London  Gc 
and  in  a  number  for  April  1762  find  this  : — 

'T*  HE  following  persons  being  fugitives  for  debt,  and  beyond  th« 

■^      on  or  before  the  twenty-fiflh  day  of  October,  one  thousand 

hundred  and  sixty,  and.  having  surrcudcicd  themselves  to  the 


T0E  EDUCATION  COMPLETED.  2II 

JEcepeTs  of  tKe  rexpcdtve  Prisons  or  GaoU  herealter  mentioned,  do  here- 
in give  notice^  tli&t  they  iatcnd  to  tiJce  the  benefit  oT  aa  Act  of  Parlia- 
ment passed  in  th«  ficst  year  of  the  reign  of  Hi»  prestat  Majesty  King 
George  the  Third,  intituled  An  Afi  pr  rdkf  cf  Insolvent  DebU^s^  at 
Itt  next  Gencni  or  Quarter  Seationa  of  the  PcacCt  to  be  held  in  and 
Dor  ibe  County,  Ridings  Division,  City,  Tt>wn,  Liberty  or  Place,  or  any 
adjoununent  thereor^  wliich  shall  happen  next  after  thirty  days  from 
tile  ^nC  Piibl)<:atioa  of  the  undermentioned  namea,  viz.^ 

jAmes  Colbum,  late  of  Smith  Street,  in  ihe  parish  of  St  James,  in 
(te  Ltiunty  of  Middleset,  Baker. 

FagEtive  fijirttidered  to  the  Keeper  of  Whitechapel  Prison,  in  the 
C»uQ[y  of  Middlesex. 

Second  Notice. 
Cha^rlex  WatkinSp  late  of  the  Bankside,  in  the  parish  of  St  Saviour, 
Soflthvrark,  tn  the  coaniy  qf  Surrey,  Waterman. 

Fugitive  sorreodered  to  the  Keeper  of  the  Poultry  Compter,  in  the 
^1^  of  London. 

Third  Notice, 
Jvnei  Buckley,  formerly  of  Cgck  Alley,  late  of  Star  Alley,  in  the 
of  Aldgalc,  Lower  Frecinct,  London,  Cordwainer. 

This  is  one  of  the  first  notices  given  of  an  intention  to 
the  benefit  of  an  Act  that  was  much  wanted.  The 
nesa  of  people  to  take  advantage  of  any  boon,  no  matter 
how  priceless,  is  here  once  again  shown,  for  there  are  but 
three  claimants  for  redemption,  two  of  whom  had  been 
ihed  before.  By  the  middle  of  1762  the  Cock  Lane 
had  had  its  two  years'  run  atid  was  discovered,  and 
must  have  been  just  about  the  time  of  the  trial  of  Par- 
lons  and  his  family — viz.,  in  June — that  the  following 
mppeared  in  the  British  Chrgnich : — 

This  day  is  publisbedj  price  6t:L 
TRUE  ftocouDt  of  the  sevemi  conversations  between  the  sup- 
posed Apparition  in  Cock  Lane,  and  the  GentUmen  who  attended. 
Tcfether  with  the  Death  and  FuneroJ  of  Mrs  K— — ,  and  many  other 
Admvtftncei  not  mode  known  to  the  World. 

Fublisheil  for  the  conviction  of  the  incredulous. 
"I  w<nild  t^e  the  g;hosL's  wotd  for  a  thousand  pounds." 

Hamlet. 
Pkinted  for  £.  Cabe,  at  his  Circulating  library  in  Ave  Marie  lane ; 
jad  to  be  h«d  of  all  Pamphlet  shops  and  News  carriers. 


A^ 


312 


mSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


to 


It  is  hard  to  tell  whether  the  writer  is  in  favour  o 
ghost's  existence  or  not  from  the  advertisement,  for  whi 
he  in  one  breath  speaks  of  the  supposed  apparition, 
immediately  afterwards  refers  to  the  incredulous,  and  quoteB, 
no  less  an  authority  than  Shakespeare  in  support  of  the:] 
imposition.  Doubtless  this  was  a  trick  to  secure  the  pur- 
chase-money, if  not  the  support,  of  the  partisans  of  both 
sides.  Next,  in  the  same  paper,  we  come  upon  a  notice  of 
the  post-office  in  reference  to  the  foreign  mails  of  that  day, 
which  runs  thus  : — 

General  Post  Office,  Aug,  8,  1762. 
■pUBLIC  Notice  is  hereby  given  to  all  persons  corresponding  with 
■^        His  Majesty's  island  of  Belleisle,  thai  Letters  for  the  future  will  be 
regularly  forwarded  from  Plymouth  to  and  from  that  Island,  by  two 
Vessels,  lately  hired  and  appointed  for  that  pur]>ose. 
By  Order  of  the  Post  master- General, 

Henry  Potts,  Secretary, 

The  mail  service  across  the  Atlantic  was  somewhat  dif- 
ferent in  1762  from  what  it  is  now,  when  a  continuous 
stream  of  letters  is  every  day  poured  forth,  either  by  way  of 
Liverpool  or  by  means  of  the  later  delivery  at  Qucenstown, 
Soldiers  seem  to  have  been  shorter,  too,  not  only  in  height 
but  in  quantity,  about  this  time,  if  the  evidence  of  an  adver- 
tisement of  January  i,  1763,  is  to  be  taken.  We  are  still 
quoting  from  the  British  CkronicUj  and  shall  continue  to 
do  so  until  another  journal  is  named : — 

npHE  Royal  Regiment  of  Horse  Guards,  commcinded  by  the  Right 
-^  Honourable  die  Marquis  of  Granby,  is  willing  to  entertain  any 
young  Man  under  23  years  of  age,  having  a  good  Character,  stiait  and 
well  made,  in  height,  from  five  feet  ten,  to  six  feet  one  inch.  Apply  to 
(Quarter  Master  Camphdt^  at  the  Market  Coffee  House,  Mayfair. 

From  the  same  copy  we  talce  another  notice,  which  shows 
that  the  executors  of  Mr  Ward  not  only  considered  it  their 
duty  to  get  rid  of  his  stock  at  the  best  possible  advantage, 
but  also  to  continue  a  defence  of  the  business  which  had 


THE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED. 


a»3 


been  inslituled  by  the  late  proprietor  against  the  attacks  of 
so  impostor.  The  reason  they  give  for  the  republication 
'\%  cunous,  unless  they  fancied  its  omission  would  trouble 
the  spirit  of  the  late  compounder  of  drugs : — 

'yjIE  hue  Joshua  Ward  of  Whitehttll,   Esq.,  having  left  very  con- 
■^       siderable  quantities  of  his  principal  Medicines  ready  prepared, 
such  and  such  only  as  may  be  applied  for  by  name,  will  be  delivered  ac 
his  late  dweliing-house  in  Whitehall. 

As  not  the  least  pretence  is  made  by  us,  of  having  any  judgment  in 
the  application  of  Medicine,  we  presume  to  say  nu  more  than  that  the 
tpecified  orders  shall  be  delivered  wiih  the  utmost  care  and  fidelity. — 
Ralph  Ward,  Thomas  Ward,  Executors. 

As  the  following  was  published  by  the  late  Mr  Ward  it  is  necessary 
to  adjoin  the  same. — "  Having  seen  in  the  public  papers  that  a  woman 
servant  discharged  from  my  service  advertises  herself  as  (late)  my 
faousckeeper  and  assistant  in  preparing  my  medicines.  It  is  a  justice 
I  owe  the  public  and  myself,  to  declare,  that  this  woman  was  hired  and 
with  me  as,  and  at  the  wages  of  a  common  working  servant, 
ting  no  other.  And  as  to  what  knowledge  she  may  have  In  pre- 
ring  my  medicines,  every  living  servant  in  my  family,  with  the  same 
»pncty,  may  pretend  to  it,  being  all  assistants  to  me  by  their  manual 
rar.     Signed — ^Joshua  Ward," 

Soon  after  this,  February  10-12,  comes  an  announcement 
ich  must  have  filled  the  lady  readers  of  tiie  Chronicle — 
ladies  ever  loved  bargains — with  anxiety  and  their 
isbands  with  terror.  The  last  paragraph  shows  that 
»e  warehouseman  knew  well  how  to  bait  his  trap  for  the 
iwary: — 

A  REAL  SALE  OF  SILKS 
T  the  Coventry  Cross,  Chandos  Street,  Covcnt  Garden.  Consist- 
ing of  a  very  great  assortment  of  Rich  brocades.  Tissues,  flowered, 
and  plain  5>attins,  Tabbies,  Ducapes,  black  Armozccns,  Rasdumorcs, 
Mantuas  &c>  Being  purchased  of  the  executors  of  an  eminent  weaver 
Bod  factor,  deceased,  and  of  another  left  off  trade. 

Merchants,  &c..  may  be  supplied  with  rich  Silks  fit  for  exportation, 
ih  and  fine  paticms,  greatly  under  prime  cost,  for  ready  money  only, 

price  marked  on  each  piece. 
It  is  hoped  Ladies  will  not  be  offended  that  they  cannot  possibly  be 
litcd  on  at  their  own  Houses. 


I 


214 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


Within  a  very  short  period,  little  more  than  a  week,  wai 
come  across  an  advertisement  which  we  admit  fairly  puzzle»i 
us.     We  are  certainly  far  more  able  to  believe  that  the  pre-^ 
cious  balsam  does  all  that  is  promised  for  it,  than  we 
to  understand  the  reason  for  its  having  but  one  title, 
runs  thus ; — 

"11  fARHAM'S  Apoplelic  Balsnm,  so  well  l;no\rn  at  an  excelleni 
'  '  remedy  against  Flls,  Convulsions,  &c.,  cures  Deafness  bad 
Humours  in  the  Eyes,  inwar^  Bruises,  dissolves  hard  Lumps  in  ihc 
Breast,  and  has  often  cured  Cancers,  as  can  be  proved  by  FacU;  is  t, 
sovereign  salve  for  green  Wounds,  Bums  &c.  Is  prepared  and  sol< 
only  by  W.  Strode,  at  the  Golden  Ball,  Tottenham  Court  Rood,! 
London. 

Who  also  prepares  and  sells  Warham's  Ccphalick  Snuff,  of  a  m< 
grateful  smell,  and  an  cffectuaJ  remedy  for  giddiness,  nervous  painfi  ii 
the  Head,  8tc. 

Also  Warham's  excellent  Mouth  water,  which  certainly  cures  the 
toothache,  strengthens  and  preserves  the  Teeth,  takes  off  all  smcUs  pn>^ 
ceeding  from  bad  Teeth,  5cc. 


In  a  number  for  February  26  to  March  i,  1764,  there 
an  announcement  of  one  of  those  dinners  without  which  n 
English  charity  ever  has  succeeded,  or,  so  long  as  English 
nature  remains  as  it  is,  ever  will  succeed  without.     It  is 
noticeable  for  various  reasons,  and  especially  for  the  notic 
of  "  Mr"  Handel  and  the  airing  of  the  hall : — 


tice^H 


THE  Anniversary  Feast  of  the  Governors  of  this  Charity 
held  on  Thursday  the  iSth  of  March  next,  at  Drapers- 


MAGDALEN  HOUSE  CHARITY. 
Prcscol  Street,  Goodman's  Fields,  Feb.  10,  1764. 

-iU  be 

Orapers-Halh  ii^^H 
Throgmorlon   Street,   after  a  sermon   to  be  preached  at  the  Paris]K^| 
Church  of  St  Gcoi^e,  Hanover  Square,  before  the  Right  Honourable 
the  Earl  of  Hertford,  President;  the  Vice-Presidents;  Treasurer  and 
Govcnior  of  this  Charity  ;  by  the  Rev.  William  Dodd,  A.M.,  Chaplai 
to  the  Bishop  of  St  David's. 

Prayers  will  l>cgin  nt  eleven  o'clock  precbeTy,  and  Dinner  will  be 
tabic  at  Three  o'clock. 


THE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED. 


"$ 


Joseph  Martin,  Esq. 
John  Wcyland,  Esq. 
John  Barker,  Esq. 
John  Eddows,  Esq. 


Stewards. 
The  Right  Hon.  Lord  Viscount  Spencer, 
The  Right  lion.  Lord  Scar&dalc. 
Smith 


John 


Esq. 


Jncob  Wilkinson,  Esq. 
John  Lcfcvrc,  Esq. 
Jacob  Bosanquct,  Esq. 


N.B. — A  Te  Deum,  composed  by  Mr  Handel  for  the  laic  Duke  of 
Chandos's  Chapel,  witli  Jubilate  and  other  Anlhcms,  will  be  performed 
by  Mr  Beard,  and  a  proper  Band  of  the  best  performers,  boUi  voca]  and 
instruincnt&L. 

The  Hall  will  be  properly  aired. 

Tickets  for  the  Feast  may  be  had  at  the  following  places,  at  five 
shilUngs  eacli,  viz.,  Mr  Wintcrbottom's,  the  Secretary,  in  Old  Broad 
Street,  and  at  the  fullowing  CofTcc-Houses  ;  Arthur's,  in  St  J.Tnies's 
Street;  Monnt's,  Grosvcmor  Square ;  Tom's,  in  Devereux  Court; 
Richard's,  in  Fleet  Street ;  Tom's,  John's,  and  Batoon's,  in  Comhill ; 
i|^  Waghora^s,  at  the  Court  of  Requests. 

^^fe  Two  ladies  Tickets  for  the  Church  will  be  given 

^^B  with  each  Feast  Ticket. 

P^«r  Gibson,  whose  advertisement  appears  in  the  edition 
for  April  5-7,  1764,  would  have  been  invaluable  to  Julia 
Pastrana  and  the  Bearded  Lady,  while  his  aid  would  have 
been  equally  in  demand  among  those  anxious  to  cover 
themselves  with  the  glory  of  hirsute  appendages.  Unfor- 
tunately for  him,  moustaches  and  beards  were  not  then  in 
demand,  nor  was  baldness  so  noticeable  as  now ;  but  the 
request  for  his  beautifying  paste  doubtless  compensated  him 
for  other  neglects : — 

^P  A  CARD  TO  THE  LADIES. 

^TtR  CIBSOX'S  Innocent  Composition,  so  greatly  admired  for  tfs 
•tVl  wonderful  effects,  in  removing  by  the  Roots  in  linlf  a  minute, 
ihc  most  strong  Hair  growing  in  any  part  of  the  Head  or  Face,  witliout 
the  least  hurt  to  the  finest  Skin  nf  ladies  or  Children  ;  he  sells  this 
useful  composition  at  51.  an  ounce,  with  such  full  directions  that  any 
Person  may  use  it  themselves. 

Also  his  carious  Preparation  for  coaxing  Hair  to  grow  on  bnld  Parts 
when  worn  off  by  illness,  it  being  allowed  by  many  who  have  tried 
m&ny  approved  remedies,  to  fully  answer  the  desired  Purpose. 


2l6 


mSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


• 


Likewise  his  Beautifying  Paste  for  the  Face,  Neck,  and  HantYs,  *o 
well  knovm  (o  the  Ladies  for  giving  a  true  Enamel  to  the  Skin  ;  in  pots 
at  los.  6d.  In  lesser  pots  at  5s.  each.  The  above  things  to  be  had  of 
liim  and  nowhere  else  in  England,  next  door  to  the  Golden  Star  in 
Lower  Cross  Street,  Hatton  Garden,  HoIbom.^Xo  less  a  quantity  of 
the  composition  can  be  had  than  one  Ounce,  nor  of  the  prcparatioa 
or  paste  than  one  Pot. 

A'^. — Gibson  in  gold  Letters  OTer  the  Door. 

That  the  practice  of  inserting  "  dummy"  advertisements 
for  tlie  purpose  of  drav'tng  others  had  been  adopted  before 
this,  is  sho^Ti  by  a  caution  inserted  in  the  Public  Advcrtistr 
of  January  i,  1765,  though  why  theatrical  managers  should 
have  objected  to  gratuitous  publicity  we  cannot  understand. 
Misrepresentation  of  the  title  of  a  play  to  be  performed 
would  rarely  act  detrimentally,  while  it  would  often  be 
beneficitil.  Managers  of  the  present  day  never  object  to 
anything  but  adverse  criticism  in  a  newspaper,  and  this 
affects  them  in  various  ways.  Critics  may  be  as  favourable 
as  they  like,  but  let  them  condemn  a  piece  and  they  raise  a 
storm  not  easily  allayed.  The  managerial  feeling  is  then 
shown  at  once.  Sometimes  the  advertisement  of  the  theatre 
is  summarily  stopped,  at  others  the  usual  first-night  privilege 
is  suspended,  and  not  rarely  of  late  years  letters  have  been 
written  and  published  showing  how  utterly  biassed  the 
criticism  has  been.  But  not  one  of  the  whole  theatrical 
fraternity  ever  objects  to  a  gratuitous  advertisement.  Even 
a  man  who  comes  on  with  a  message  likes  it,  though  he 
in  common  with  all  the  outsiders  of  "the  profession" 
affects  to  despise  criticism,  and  will,  on  the  slightest  pro- 
vocation, speak  about  well-known  writers  for  the  press 
in  a  most  contemptuous  mannen  But  here  is  the  adver^ 
tisement: —  ■ 

THE  Managers  of  Drury  Lane  think  it  proper  to  give  notice  that 
Advertisements  of  their  Tlays  by  their  authority  are  published 
only  in  this  Paper  and  the  Daily  Courant,  and  that  the  Publishers  of 
all  other  Papers  who  presume  to  insert  Advertisements  of  the 
PlaySf  can  do  it  only  by  some  surreptitious  intelligence  or  hcari 


THE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED.  217 

which  frequently  leads  them  to  commit  gross  Errors,  u  mentioning  one 
Play  for  another,  falsely  representing  the  Parts,  etc,  to  the  misinfonna- 
tioa  of  the  Town  and  ibe  great  detriment  of  the  said  Theatre. 

As  diflfercnt  in  style  as  it  is  distant  in  date  and  place  of 
publication  is  the  next  item  which  attracts  our  attention. 
It  looks  suspiciously  like  a  hoax,  for  though  other  New- 
castle papers  of  the  time  have  been  rigorously  searched,  no 
ncTi's  is  discovered  of  Mrs  Bell  having  shared  the  fate 
which  is  said  to  overtake  all  who  pry  unduly  into  the  secrets 
of  the  Craft  for  the  purpose  of  making  capital  out  of  their 
information.  The  advertisement  appears  in  the  Newcastle 
Courani  of  January  4,  1770,  and  runs  as  follows  ; — 

'T*HIS  is  to  acquaint  the  Public,  That  on  Monday  the  first  instant, 
-^  being  the  Lodge  (or  Monthly  Meeting)  night  of  the  Free  and 
Accepted  Masons  of  the  22d  Regiment,  held  at  the  Crown,  near 
Kewgate  (Newcastle)  Mrs  Bell,  the  Landlady  of  the  House,  broke  open 
A  Door  (with  a  Poker)  that  had  not  been  opened  for  some  Years  past, 
by  which  means  she  got  into  an  adjacent  Room,  made  two  Holes  through 
the  Wall,  and  by  that  stratagem  discovered  the  secrets  of  Masonry  ;  and 
she,  knowing  herself  to  be  the  first  Woman  in  the  World  that  ever 
found  out  the  Secret,  is  willing  to  make  it  kncxwn  to  all  her  Sex.  So 
any  Lady  who  is  desirous  of  learning  the  Secrets  of  Free  Masonry,  by 
applying  to  tliat  well-leamed  Woman  (Mr&  Bell  that  lived  1 5  years  in 
and  about  Newgate)  may  be  instructed  in  all  the  Secrets  of  Masonry. 

Coming  back  to  London  again,  we  find  the  following 
announcement  published  in  more  papers  than  one.  It  is 
well  worthy  of  perusal,  as  giving  a  picture  of  the  lone- 
liness of  Chelsea  and  its  approaches  a  hundred  years  ago, 
when  it  was  a  little  outlying  village,  and  when  the  whole 
duty  of  a  watchman  was  to  evade  by  any  and  every 
means  in  his  power,  contact  with  footpads,  **high  toby- 
men,"  or  burglars  : — 

Chelsea,  Middlesex,  Feb.  20,  I770. 

THE  Inhobitnnts  of  the  Parish  of  Chelsea,  being  desirous  to  pre- 
vent, as  for  as  in  them  lies,  any  Robl>cries  or  Felonies  being 
committed  in  the  said  Parish,  do  hereby  give  Notice,  that  they  have 


N 
» 


218  BiSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 

entered  into  a  Subscription,  for  tt  Reward  for  the  Discovery  of  Rob- 
beries or  Felonies,  and  have  iberefore  paid  into  the  Hands  of  Mr 
Edward  Anderson,  of  Chelsea  afotcioid,  as  Treasurer,  a  Sum  dt 
Money  10  answer  the  several  Parpuses  hereafter  mentioned^  to  sudi 
Person  or  Persons  who  shall,  daring  the  Space  of  one  whole  Year  from 
the  Date  hereof,  apprehend  or  take  any  Offender  or  Offenders,  as  txti 
herein  after  described,  llie  ficveral  and  respective  Rewards  hereafter 
mentioned,  in  fourteen  Days  after  Conviction,  over  and  above  what 
such  Person  or  Per^ions  may  be  entitled  unto  by  such  Apprehendio 
and  Conviction  by  any  Law  now  in  Being. 

For  every  Robbery  that  shall  be  committed  by  any  Highwayman  or- 
Highwaymen,  Footpad  or  Footpads,  within  the  said  Parish  (except 
that  Part  of  the  Parish  and  Road  leading  from  London  to  Harrow  oa^ 
the  Hill,  which  belongs  to  the  said  Parish,  the  Sum  of  Ten  Pounds. 

For  any  Person  or  Pcrstons  who  shall  break  into  the  Dwelling  House 
of  any  Subscriber,  or  send  any  Incendiary  Letter  to  any  Subscriber, 
the  Sum  of  Ten  Pounds. 

Fur  any  Person  or  Persons  who  shall  steal  any  Horse,  Mare,  Colt, 
or  other  Cattle,  belonging  lo  a  Subscriber,  or  commit  any  Thefts  of 
Robberies  in  any  of  their  Outhouses,  ihe  Sum  of  Five  Poimds, 

For  every  Theft  or  Robbery  lliat  shall  be  committed  in  any  Garden, 
Garden-Grounds,  or  Fields,  Orchard,  Court  Yard,  Backside  or  Fish- 
ponds, or  any  Barge  or  Craft  lying  ashore,  belonging  lo  any  of  the 
Subscribers,  or  shall  steal  any  of  their  Fruit,  Poultry,  Fish,  Linen, 
Ijead,  Tron>Gate5,  or  Gate-Hinges,  Pales,  or  Fences,  the  Sum  of  Forty  h 
Shillings.  H 

And  the  Subscribers  do  hereby  promise  lo  pay  and  discharge  the  ^ 
vhole,  or  such  Part  of  the  F.xpencc  of  such  Prosecution  or  Prosecutions 
of  the  several  Offences  above-mentioned,  as  upon  Application  to  any 
iive  or  more  of  the  Sal>scribers,  at  a  Meeting  called  for  that  Purpose, 
shall  judge  rea->onabIc. 

And  for  the  farther  Encouragement  of  all  and  every  the  Person  and 
Persomr  who  shall  apprehend  and  convict  any  Offender  or  Offenders  in 
any  of  the  Offences  aforenaid,  the  said  Subscribcrbdo  hereby  promiM 
to  u&e  their  Endeavours  for  procuring  the  spee<1y  Payment  of  such 
Reward  as  such  Person  or  Pcr&ons  may  be  entitled  to  by  any  Law  now 
in  Being. 

And  the  said  Subscribers  do  farther  promise  and  agree,  Tliat  if  any 
Offenders  shall,  before  his  or  her  own  Apprehension  for  any  of  the 
Offences  aforesaid,  voluntarily  discover,  or  apprehend  any  of  his  or 
her  Accomplices,  so  as  he,  she,  or  they,  be  convicted  thereof,  such 
Person  so  apprehending  as  afore«iid,  shall  be  entitled  to,  and  have  such 
Reurard  or  Sums  of  Money  as  before  provided  for  apprehending  and 
taking  the  said  several  Offenders  as  aforesaid,  upon  Conviction 


r 

I 


I 


A 


THE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED,  219 

Thepopularity  of  the  Daily  Couranizxi^  Public  Advertiser 
with  the  managers  of  Drury  Lane  Theatre  seems  to  have 
come  to  a  sudden  end  in  1771,  probably  for  the  reasons  we 
bave  noticed  as  affecting  modem  managerial  bosoms,  for  in 
the  Didly  Post  this  appears  : — 

TO  prevent  any  Mistake  in  future  in  advertising  the  Flajrs  and 
entertainments  of  Drury  Lane  Theatre,  the  Managers  think  it 
jmipeT  to  declare  thid  the  Playbills  are  inserted  by  their  direction  in 
tiiis  Paper  only. 

The  St  Jame^s  Chronicle  (a  weekly  paper  which  is  still 
afive,  and  as  strong  in  its  Toryism  as  ever),  in  July  1772, 
contains  an  advertisement  which  for  coolness  and  audacity 
is  veiy  noticeable,  even  at  a  time  when  requests  were  put 
forth  in  the  columns  of  the  public  press  with  most  unblush- 
ing effrontery : — 

"1  IT  ANTED  immediately,  Fifteen  Hundred  or  Two  Tliousand  Pounds 
■  ■  by  a  person  not  worth  a  Groat,  who  having  neither  Houses, 
Lands,  Annuities  or  public  Funds,  can  offer  no  other  Security  than  that 
of  simple  Bond,  bearing  simple  interest  and  engaging  the  Repayment  of 
the  Snm  borrowed  in  five,  six  or  seven  Yeai^,  as  may  be  agreed  upon 
by  the  Parties.  Whoever  this  may  suit  (for  it  is  hoped  it  will  suit 
somebody)  by  directing  a  line  to  A.  Z.  in  Rochester,  shall  be  imme- 
diately replied  to  or  waited  on,  as  may  appear  necessary. 

Benevolence  must  have  been  very  strongly  developed  in 
any  one  who  acceded  to  the  requests  of  A.  Z.  But  that 
there  was  a  deal  of  that  commodity  afloat  at  the  time  of 
which  we  are  writing,  our  next  specimen,  one  of  disinterest- 
edness and  charity,  shows.  It  is  from  the  Gazetteer  of 
November  29,  1773  : — 

A  LADY  of  strict  Honour  and  Benevolence,  who  lives  in  a  genteel 
sphere  of  Life,  influenced  by  a  variety  of  critical  Circumstances, 
offers  her  Service  as  an  Advocate  to  Persons  under  the  most  intricate 
Circumstances,  especially  to  those  of  her  ow  n  Sex,  whose  Troubles  she 
can  with  a  secret  Sympathy  share,  and  who  will  point  out  certain  Means 
of  alleviating  their  Distress.  The  Advertiser  has  a  Genteel  House  to 
accommodate  such  Persons,  while  their  Affairs  are  settled.    The  greatest 


320 


JIISTOKY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


• 


Delicacy,  Discretion,  and  most  Inviolable  Secrecf  may  be  depended 
Tliercfore  to  prevent  being  made  the  sport  of  Curiosity,  ihc  Advert 
is  determined  to  answer  sucU  Letters  only  that  appear  explicit  and  i 
factory,  with  the  Principal'a  Name  and  Place  of  Abode.     Please 
address  a  line  (ix>st  paid)  for  Mrs  Gladen,  at  Ko.   5  Church  Re 
Aldgate  Church,  Whilechapcl, 

Especially  those  of  her  own  sex.  It  would  be  hard 
discover  what  any  one  of  an  opposite  gender  could  want 
resident  with  this  nice  old  lady,  unless  indeed  he  wishe< 
to  put  in  practice  the  advice  given  to  Nicodemus.  But, 
for  money  this  benevolent  beldame  would  have  done  any- 
thing, there  is  little  doubt  she  had  plenty  of  visitors  of 
both  sexes.  It  does  not  do,  however,  to  be  too  hard  on 
Mrs  Gladen,  when  it  is  considered  that  she  h.is  many  highly 
successful  and  extremely  respectable  representatives  of  the 
present  day.  Wc  therefore  pass  on  to  the  latter  part  of 
1774,  when  it  is  evident,  from  a  perusal  of  the  advertisements 
alone,  that  a  general  election  is  impending.  In  September 
we  find  this  in  the  Monting  Post: — 

A  GENTLEMAN  of  Character  and   considerable  Fortune  is  ex- 
tremely desirous  of  a  High  Honoijr  at  an  approaching  Period. 
Any  one  who  can  assist  him,  or  point  out  an  eligible  means  of  succeeding, 
Bhall  be  amply  recompensed  both  at  present  and  in  future. — In  shoru^_ 
name  your  Terras  ;  secrecy  is  all  required  on  his  part.     A  Line  lo  M^H 
Dormer,  at  No.  24  Ludgate  Hill,  will  be  attended  to.  ^^ 

The  Morning  Post  seems  to  have  been  a  particular 
medium  for  the  process  by  which  legislators  were  made 
in  the  "good  old  days" — good  enough  for  the  rich  and 
unscrupulous,  of  course — for  very  shortly  afterwards  many 
of  the  same  kind  appear.  The  following  stipulates  the 
amount,  and  with  true  unselfishness  recommends  the  candi- 
date : — 

A  GENTLEMAN  of  Honour,  Character,  and  Forttine,  who  li 
^'1,500  at  his  Bankers\  has  some  desire  to  obtain  a  Scat 
connection  with  him  will  do  no  discredit  lo  any  Man  of  Rank,  or  Body 
of  Men.    As  he  is  serious,  be  expects  no  Application  but  from  sach  a* 
are  so,  to  Q.  at  New  Lloyd's  Coflec-housc,  Comhill. 


I 


THE  EDUCATION  COMfLETED. 


22f 


One  who  follows  is  much  more  generous,  so  far  as  money 
is  concerned,  though  he  lacks  the  disinterested  recom- 
mendation of  Q.  Still  as  money  and  not  mind  is  the  desi- 
deratum among  election  agents,  there  is  little  fear  that  the 
chances  were  in  favour  of  W.  W.,  though  doubtless  there 
was  room  enough  found  at  St  Stephen's  for  both.  Room 
for  two  !  room  for  two  hundred  who  had  money  with  which 
to  pave  their  way  : — 

A  GENTLEMAN  of  independent  fortune  is  ready  to  give  three 
**-  Thousand  Cjuineas  to  be  accommodated  with  a  certain  purpose  to 
answer  the  advertuer's  end  at  this  Crisis.  Any  one  inclined  to  treat 
about  the  above,  may  be  further  informed  by  Line,  or  otherwise,  diiected 
for  W.  W.,  at  George's  Coffee-house,  upper  end  of  the  HaymorfccL. 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  the  advertisements  in 
reference  to  the  elections  emanated  only  from  persons 
desirous  of  writing  themselves  down  M.P.'s.  There  were 
plenty  anxious  as  well  as  willing  to  assist  them  for  a  con- 
sideration. From  many  of  that  time  we  select  one,  still 
taking  the  Aforuwg  Post  as  our  guide  : — 

ANY  Man  of  Fortune  or  Family  wishing  to  enjoy  an  Ilonourahle 
■**•  Station  for*even  Years,  and  to  accomplish  it  without  the  anxiety 
which  generally  accotnjj^^nics  the  attaining  it  by  Contention,  may  pro- 
bably be  accommodated  to  the  utmost  of  his  Wishes,  by  addressing 
himself  to  C.  C.  to  be  left  at  the  bar  of  the  Chapter  Coffee-house, 
Paternoster  Row,  and  disclosing  his  Name,  the  which  he  may  do  without 
the  ruk  of  being  divulged,  as  the  advertiser  pledges  himself  that  the 
most  inviolable  Delicacy  and  Secrecy  will  be  observed. 

We  commend  the  foregoing  to  the  notice  of  the  gentle- 
men who  talk  of  Conservatism  as  the  bulwark  of  the  nation, 
jind  rejoice  over  any  so-called  political  reaction.  How- 
ever, as  Conservatism  now  means  "  dishing  the  Whigs"  by 
the  most  advanced  measures,  we  cnn  put  up  with  it,  and  so 
pass  on  to  another  specimen  from  the  Aformng  Post^  wluch 
is  published  at  the  same  time  as  the  foregoing,  and  is  found 
snugly  ensconced  among  tliose  of  quite  a  diflferent  ten- 
dency : — 


I 


222 


21IST0RY  OF  ADVERTISISG. 


A  YOUNG  Gcfilleinan  of  ihe  most  liberal  educalion  and  a  genteel 
Address,  would  be  happy  in  having  an  opportunity  of  dcvotii 
his  services  to  a  Lady  of  real  fashion  and  forume,  who  may  wish  to  hai 
some   particular  deficiencies  thoroughly  supplied,  without   subjectjf 
herself  to  any  disagreeable  restraint.     Any  lady  to  whom  such  an 
may  be  suitable,  will  receive  the  fullest  Explanation,  in  answer  to  a 
letter  addressed  to  A.  X.  Turk's  head  Co0ce  House,  Strand. 


We  will  leave  this  without  ftirthcr  comment  than  the 
expression  of  a  sad  idea  that  .this  young  gentleman  knew 
what  was  marketable,  as  well  as  a  belief  that  he  and  others 
like  him  may  have  done  much  to  prevent  the  titles  and 
fortunes  of  noblemen  and  gentlemen  who  married  late  in 
life  from  passing  to  remote  branches.  We  have  no  wish  to 
intrude  our  opinions,  which  are  strong  as  our  faith  in 
human  nature  is  weak,  but  the  advertisement  is  only  % 
specimen  of  many  others,  and,  like  its  congeners,  appc 
in  one  of  the  highest  class  daily  papers  of  the  time.  Fol 
are  not  so  outspoken  now  as  was  the  fashion  a  hundre 
years  ago,  yet  is  there  any  one  who  will  venture  to  state 
that  we  are  more  virtuous?  It  will  be  the  natural  impulse 
of  many  who  read  the  next  advertisement,  which  is  also 
from  the  now  fashionable  and  severely  virtuous  Post  (date 
January  21,  1775),  to  cry  out  against  the  unnatural  guardian 
who  offers  to  sell  his  ward.  Perhaps  though,  if  they  lake 
time  to  reflect,  they  may  remember  instances  of  marriage 
for  money,  which^  if  not  so  public,  were  quite  as  iniquitous- 
Listen  to  a  gentleman  of  honour  of  the  last  century  : — 


'4 


A    GENTLEMAN  of  Honour  and  Property,  havinij  in  his  dispoi 
■**•    at  present  a  young  Lady  of  good  Family,  with  a  fortune  of  Sis 


Sixc 
Thousand  Pounds,  on  her  Marriage  with  his  approbation,  would  bcvi 
happy  to  treat  with  a  >faD  of  Fashion  and  Family,  who  may  think 
worth  hi-t  while  to  give  the  Advertiser  a  Gratuity  of  Five  thousand 
pounds  on  the  day  of  Marriage.     As  this  is  no  common  ndvcniMmcnt, 
it  is  expected  no  Gentleman  will  apply  whose  Family  and  Conneciiuns 
win  not  bear  the  strictest  enquiry.    The  Advertiser  liaving  always  livi 
retired  from  tlie  World,  immersed  in  business,  ia  unacquainted  wit 
those  of  that  Rank  of  Life  that  the  Lady's  fortune  enlitiet  fact  to 


mifV 


THE  EDUCA  TION  COMFLE  TED.  223 

connected  with,  for  which  reason  he  has  made  this  public  application. 
Letters  addressed  to  L.  M.,  at  Tom's  Cofice  House,  Devereux  Court, 
aeu*  the  Temple,  mentioning  real  Name,  and  places  of  Abode,  will 
pnnctTully  be  attended  to. 

This  is  not  so  bad  for  a  poor  innocent  who  has  lived 
retired  from  the  world.  And  doubtless,  though  he  was 
unacquainted  with  those  of  that  rank  of  life  to  which  a  lady 
with  sixty  thousand  pounds  might  well  aspire,  he  was  not 
to  be  deceived  by  even  the  most  specious  of  fortune-hunters, 
Irishmen  included.  But  here  is  another  notice  quite  as 
interesting,  though  of  a  very  different  kind.  It  is  also  from 
the  Morning  Post,  and  appears  a  few  days  after  that  we 
have  chosen  to  precede  it : — 

To  the  Ladies  on  Money  Affairs. 

WHEREAS  there  are  sundry  Ladies  who  have  Two,  Three,  or 
Four  thousand  pounds,  or  even  more  Money  at  their  command, 
and  who,  from  not  knowing  how  to  dispose  of  the  same  to  the  greatest 
advantage,  but  by  living  on  the  Small  Interests  which  the  stocks  pro- 
duce, afford  them  but  a  scanty  Maintenance,  especially  to  those  who 
have  been  accustomed  to  Affluence,  and  would  wish  to  live  so  still ; 
the  Advertiser  (who  is  a  Gentleman  of  independent  Fortune,  strict 
Honour  and  Character,  and  above  any  other  rewartl  than  the  pleasure 
of  serving  the  Sex)  acquaints  such  Ladies,  that  if  they  will  favour  him 
with  their  Name  and  Address,  so  as  he  may  wait  on  them  as  oppor- 
tunity best  suits,  he  will  put  them  into  a  Method  by  which  ihey  may, 
without  any  Trouble,  and  with  an  absolute  Certainty,  place  out  their 
Money,  so  as  for  it  to  produce  tlicm  a  clear  and  lawful  interest  of  Ten 
or  Twelve  per  cent,  and  that  too  on  equally  as  good  and  safe  Securities 
AS  if  in  the  Funds,  or  on  Mortgage  at  the  common  "low  inlerest,  etc. 

Please  to  direct  to  R.  J.  Esq.  at  the  Turks  Head  Coffee  hoiwr," 
opposite  Catharine  Street,  in  the  Strand,  and  the  same  will  be  duly 
attended  to. 

There  was  no  Associate  Institute  then  to  look  after  the 
interests  of  unprotected  females;  and  perhaps  if  there  had 
been,  so  plausible  a  rogue  would  not  have  attracted  the 
attention  of  its  highly  paid  officials.  But  the  "  weaker 
vessels"  seem  able  to  take  tlieir  own  parts  at  advertising, 


224  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISrNG, 

for  the  following  is  by  no  means  a  unique  specimen  of  their 
effusions.  Once  again  we  draw  from  the  Morning  Post^  the 
date  being  December  15,  1775  :  — 

A  LADY  wishes  to  borrow  One  Hundred  Pounds.  The  Security, 
•**-  iliougli  personal,  may  probably  be  very  agreeable  to  a  single 
Gentleman  of  spirit.  Every  particular  will  be  communicated  with 
Candour  and  Sincerity,  where  confidence  is  so  far  reposed  as  to  give  ihc 
real  Name  and  Address  of  the  party  willing  to  oblige  the  Advcrtiafr. 
Gentlemen  of  real  Fortune  and  liberal  Sentiments,  and  those  only,  are 
requested  to  address  a  line  to  V.  N.  at  Mr  Dyke's,  Cross  Street, 
Long- Acre. 

This  lady  was  modest  as  well  as  candid  and  sincere ;  it 
is  to  be  hoped  she  was  pretty  also,  or  else  she  had  small 
chance.  But  now  comes  not  virtue  but  honours  in  dis- 
tress, and  sufficiently  hungry  to  be  satisfied  with  very  dirty 
pudding.  In  our  own  times  baronets  have  seen  unpleasant- 
nesses ;  we  remember  one  who  used  to  do  casual  report- 
ing, fires,  accidents,  coroners'  inquests,  &c.j  and  another 
who  took  lo  the  stage,  unsuccessfully.  But  he  who  adver- 
tised in  the  Daily  Advertiser  of  January  23,  1776,  was 
worse  off  than  any  titled  successor.  Judge  for  your- 
selves : — 

MATRIMONY. 
For  Fifty  Pounds  only,  may  gain  One  Hundred  and  Forty  Thousand. 

A  BARONET  of  Great  Britain,  that  has  an  eligible  chance  and  right 
in  thirteen  distinct  Claims  to  speedily  recover  the  above  Sum,  or 
to  expect  part  by  a  Compromise,  inforced  by  a  very  little  Assistance,  will 
marry  any  Woman,  though  with  Child,  or  having  Children  by  a  former 
Husband,  that  will  put  such  a  Fifty-pound  ticket  in  such  Lottery  j  the 
icmainder  of  her  Money,  if  any,  will  be  settled  upon  her ;  hi^  perwn  may 
not  be  objected  to,  and  her  Attorney  may  iiberally  inspect  Writings,  &c. 
which  in  form  set  forth  his  expectancies  perspicuously;  and  any  young 
Counsel  or  others  may  gain  an  Advantage,  even  a  Fortune,  by  offering 
■  small  benevolent  Assistance.  Direct  fur  the  Baronet,  at  No.  s,  near 
Blenheim  Step.?,  in  Oxford  St.,  opposite  Oxford  Market,  who  has  als*)  a 
profession  that  may  be  made  very  advantagcouK  for  any  new  Adventurer 
in  the  physical  way,  that  has  a  little  money  to  join  with  him  as  %. 
Partner.  A  patient  hearing  will  obviate  all  Objection,  and  the  strictcdjt, 
Secrecy  and  Honour  may  be  depended  on. 


% 


THE  EDUCATION  COAffLETED,  22% 

It  is  noticeable  that  *'  the  Baronet,"  like  those  of  his  rank 
already  referred  to,  was  not  above  turning  his  hand  to  earn 
an  honest  penny.  A  little  way  back  we  invited  the  atten- 
tion of  Conservatives  to  an  edifying  extract ;  may  we  now 
dedicate  the  baronet's  appeal  to  those  who  would  abolish 
the  laws  of  primogeniture?  Let  them  be  advised  in  time, 
unless  they  should  wish  to  see  a  duke  reduced  to  de- 
spondency, or  an  earl  holding  horses  for  his  living.  No 
matter  what  happens  to  younger  sons.  Let  ihera  and  their 
younger  sons  be  swallowed  up  in  the  middle  and  lower 
classes,  as  they  are  now,  though  nobody  seems  to  notice  it; 
but  let  us  preserve,  no  matter  who  else  suffers,  our  titled 
aristocracy  in  its  present  exalted  position.  But  what  is 
to  become  of  the  scions  of  nobility  who  have  no  claim 
upon  landed  estate,  when  nepotism  ceases  to  existj  sine- 
cures are  abolished,  and  all  Government  clerkships  are 
matter  of  open  competition  !  Frankly  wc  do  not  know, 
but  doubtless  Providence  will  always  be  tenderly  disposed 
towards  persons  of  good  family.  Turning  once  more  lo 
the  Morning  Post  (February  15,  1776),  we  come  upon  an 
announcement  the  merits  of  which  are  hard  to  determine. 
It  promises  rather  too  much  : — 

FEMALE  COMPANION. 

ALADV  of  independent  Fortune  rinU  liberal  Sentiments  would  1>e 
glad  if,  in  procuring  to  herself  an  cgrecftble  Companion  she  could 
mt  the  same  time  relieve  from  Distress,  and  perhaps  prevent  from  utter 
K.uin,  some  still  deserving  although  imfortunale  fair  one  ;  for  she  can 
make  allowance  for  the  frailty  of  her  own  Sex,  and  knows  tlie  base  ar:s 
e»f  Ihc  other  i  in  a  word,  a  sin^^U  /iiux pas  will  be  no  objection,  pro- 
vided there  remnin  a  virLuous  Disposttton,  and  thai  the  person  wanted 
be  £Ood>natured,  affable,  and  sincere  in  the  account  she  may  give  of 
herself,  which  for  that  purpose  may  at  first  t>e  anonymous.  She  mubt 
also  possess  the  usual  occomplishmcnts  required  by  a  good  Education  ; 
know  something  of  Music,  have  an  agreeable  Voice,  and  a  genteel  Per- 
son, nut  under  twenty  nor  above  the  age  of  twenty-five  years.  Such  as 
come  within  this  description  may  apply  by  Ict.er  to  B.  D.  at  the  York 
Coffee  House,  St  James's  Street,  and  the  apparently  most  deserving  will 
be  enquired  after.    No  kept  Mistress  or  lady  of  Pleasure  need  npply. 

r 


236 


ws  rox  y  of  ad  veh  tis/ng. 


There  seems  more  of  the  procuress  than  the  patron  aboi 
this;  still  there  is  no  knowing  what  ihe  taste  of  an  elderl] 
single  lady  who  fancied  herself  injured  by  the  opposite 
would  not  lead  her  to  do.  So  leaving  the  question  open/ 
and  trusting  the  reader  will  be  able  to  satisfy  himself  as  to 
the  purity  or  the  reverse  of  the  advertiser's  motives,  we  will 
pass  on  to  Lloyd's  Evening  Post,  in  which,  about  the  same 
lime,  we  find  the  following,  which  is  worthy  of  notice  : — 

MONEY  wanted— when  it  can  l>e  procured— ^^loo.  No  security 
can  be  given  for  the  Pnncipait  and  possibly  the  Interest  may  not 
be  punctually  paid.  Under  the  nbove  circumstances  should  any  one 
be  found  willing  to  lend  llie  desired  Sum,  he  will  much  surprise^  and 
particularly  obligi  the  author  of  this  advertisement. — Direct  for  A.  B.  C. 
George's  Caffcchouse,  I^iaymotkct. 


. 


Even  the  "author"  of  this,  confiJcnt  and  assured  as  he 
must  be  generally,  seems  to  doubt  the  readiness  of  people 
to  part  with  their  money  without  some  inducement,  no 
matter  how  slight  If  A.  B.  C  had  offered  something  impos- 
sible of  fulfilment  in  return  for  the  desired  loan,  he  would 
very  likely  have  had  many  applications,  whereas  it  would 
be  hard  to  believe  that  in  the  present  instance  he  had  even 
one.  Now,  if  he  had  adopted  a  plan  similar  to  that  which 
is  advertised  in  the  Mur/iiftg  CVz/wnV/^  of  April  9,  1776,  he 
would  have  had  a  much  better  chance  of  raising  the  wind- 
This  must  have  arrested  the  attention  and  diverted  the 
current  of  pocket-money  of  many  young  lovers: — 


AFFECTION. 


I 


ANY  Lady  or  Gentleman  who  has  made  an  honourable  Connection^ 
•'*■  may  be  acquainted  if  the  other  party  has  a  reciprocal  Affection  ; 
and  so  nice  is  the  method,  that  it  gives  in  a  great  measure  the  degree 
of  esteem.  No  fortune -telling,  nor  anything  tricing  in  it,  but  ts  a 
serious  and  sincere  Procedure.  To  divest  any  apprehension  of  dis> 
covery  of  parties,  the  initials  of  their  names  is  sufficient.  That  the 
meaning  of  the  advertiser  may  be  ascertained,  it  is  only  asked  for  A. 
to  know  if  C.  D.  has  a  genuine  affection  ;  and  of  C.  D.  tf  A,  B.  h 
the  like.    It  is  requested  that  honest  Initials  be  sent,  else  the  det>oiiit 


THE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED.  227 

of  two  shillings  and  uxpence  is  useless.  But  to  convince  those  that 
•end  for  the  intelligence  of  the  use  of  this,  they  need  only  to  send  with 
the  real,  other  Initials  indifferent  to  them,  and  they  will  be  satisfied. 
Absence  or  distance  does  not  al»ite  the  certainty  of  the  then  present 
Esteem  and  Affection. 

Letters  (free)  directed  to  S.  J.,  No.  1 1,  Duke-street,  Grosvenor  Square, 
will  have  honest  answers  left  there,  or  sent  conformable  to  the  address, 
in  ft  day  or  two  after  their  Receipt, 

The  next  advertisement  we  find  in  our  collection  savours 
less  of  affection,  for  the  desire  of  the  inserter  seems  to  be 
to  prevent  some  one  to  whom  he  has  an  objection  inherit- 
ing  entailed  estates.  It  has  its  value,  in  addition  to  what 
consideration  may  be  given  to  it  as  a  specimen  of  the  man- 
ners of  the  last  century,  as  showing  the  kind  of  people  who 
then  made  the  laws.  Decency  must  have  made  a  decided 
advance,  look  at  it  from  what  point  we  will,  since  April  16, 
1776,  when  this  appeared  in  the  Public  Advertiser : — 

A  GENTLEMAN  who  hath  filled  two  succeeding  seats  in  Parlia< 
ment,  is  near  sixty  years  of  age,  lives  in  great  splendour  and 
hospitality,  and  from  whom  a  considerable  Estate  must  pass  if  he  dies 
without  issue,  hath  no  objection  to  marry  any  Widow  or  single  Lady, 
provided  the  party  be  of  genteel  birth^  polite  manners,  and  five,  six, 
seven,  or  eight  Months  gone  in  her  Pregnancy. 

Letters  directed  to Brecknock,  Esq.,  at  Will's  Coffee  House, 

facing  the  Admiralty,  will  be  honoured  with  due  attention,  secrecy,  and 
every  possible  mark  of  respect. 

In  the  Daily  Advertiser  of  July,  in  the  same  year,  we 
find  the  following,  which,  though  of  a  much  more  legitimate 
character  than  that  just  quoted,  and  directed  to  the  interests 
of  fair  and  honest  trading,  will  repay  perusal : — 

TWO  Men  beg  leave  to  acquaint  the  Public  in  general  that  they 
keep  the  cleanest  Barber's  Shop  in  all  London,  where  the  people 
can  have  their  Hair  cut  for  2d.,  dressed  for  3d.,  and  be  shaved  for  id. 
One  of  these  Men  can  bleed  and  draw  teeth  very  well ;  he  bleeds  both 
in  the  English  and  German  manner,  as  well  at  home  as  abroad,  and  is 
exceeding  careful.    Bleeding  3d.^  drawing  teeth  4d.  There  is  a  parlour 


238 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


i 


made  in  the  shop  on  purpoM  for  bleeding  and  drawing  teeth, 
people  may  depend  on  being  served  immediately  and  well  in  evt 
respect.    No  satisfaction,  no  pay.    The  above-mcationed  Shop  is 
Ko.  7  King  Street,  Seven  Dials. 

Bleeding  nowadays  is  still  done  by  barbers,  though  no 
in  the  same  way,  nor  so  scientifically,  as  practised  by  th< 
two  clean  shopkeepers  of  King  Street.  Shaving  as  a  high 
art  is  neglected  nowadays,  a  state  of  affairs  traceable  to  the 
beard  and  moustache  movement  of  the  last  twenty  years, 
which  has  rendered  shaving  below  the  attention  of  true 
artists,  who  now  give  their  attention  to  "cutting  and  curl- 
ing," &c.  Any  one  who  doubts  this  had  better  trust  himself 
to  the  untender  mercies  of  half-a-dozen  different  barbers,  in 
ordinary  thoroughfares,  and  where  the  prices  are  fixed  at 
ordinary  rates.  Before  he  has  tried  the  sixth  establishment 
he  will  not  only  have  conformed  to  our  views,  but  will  be 
a  considerably  altered,  if  not  an  improved,  man.  In  the 
Moruiug  Post  of  October  13,  1778,  we  come  across  an  | 
appeal  to  the  short-sighted,  which  is  worthy  of  the  tribes  of 
welchers  who  in  our  own  times  have  made  large  fortunes 
through  advertising  in  the  columns  of  the  sporting  papers. 
This  must  have  been  something  like  the  **  discretionary 
investment"  dodge,  which  brought  in  large  sums  to  swind- 
ling firms  who  professed  to  govern  the  turf  a  few  years  back, 
and  whose  advertisements  occupied  whole  coluiuns  in  the 
newspapers : —  ^| 

A  Serious  though  SuRrarsiNC  Offer, 

FOR  the  compliment  of  One  Hundred  Guineas,  any  enterprizing 
Gentleman  or  Lady  may  have  revealed  lo  them  an  eligible 
method  of  convening  hundreds  into  Thousands,  in  a  few  weeks,  and  of 
continuing  so  to  do  yearly.  The  requiring  so  inadequate  a  considenLi>^| 
Uon,  is  iKcause  the  proposer  is  under  misfortunes.  Only  letters  witlr^ 
real  nnmes  and  residencies  will  be  regarded.  Direct  for  W.  W.,  at  the 
Kind's  Bench  Coffee- 1  louse. 

In  the  early  part  of  1778  (May  7)  the  MamingPost  con- 
tained the  following  appeal  for  an  article  which  has  beea 


THE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED.  229 


ercr  since  the  world  begas,  which  is  not  valued 

ichwhen  possessed,  and  which  is  ibout  the  last  thing  one 

could  hope  to  obtain  through  the  niedmm  of  an  advertise- 

loent,  no  nia^tter  how  cunningly  contrived^  nor  how  great 

^Ihe  drcnktion  of  the  papei  in  which  it  appeared : — 

WAJJTED  hnmeduUelf^  the  moit  difficttlt  ihlng  to  be  met  with  in 
the  worldp  A  StNCKlE  Fri£NI>,  by  a  person,  who,  though  in 
meridian  of  life,  has  outtived  all  b«  had.  He  wishes  to  meet  with  a 
Fenon  in  whom  lie  may  repose  the  most  implicit  Confidence ;  a  Person 
vho  has  a  good  heart,  and  abilities  (o  second  that  goodness  of  heart ; 
who  wUI  give  hie  advice  cotdially,  and  assistance  rcadity.  The  adver- 
tUei-  is  a  person  in  a  genteel  situation  or  life  ;  has  a  decent  income,  but. 
is  ^l  pr^eni  ^o  drcumstoQced  a*  to  want  a  sincere  friend. — Any  Person 
willing  (from  principles  of  Friendshipp  not  Curiosity)  to  reply  to  the 
above,  by  directing  a  line  to  T.  S.,  at  Mr  SharpV,  stationer,  facing 
Somerset  HoasCj  SttKtvd^  wUi  be  immediately  waited  on  or  properly 
replied  tdr 

Money,  the  sincerest  of  all  friends,  is  probably  the  object 
of  T,  S.*s  ambition.  If  he  was  not  suited  in  the  year  '78, 
fta  opportunity  occurred  soon  after;  for  specially  directed 
to  the  cupidity  of  persons  who  desire  to  get  money,  and 
are  not  at  all  particular  what  the  means  so  long  as  the  end 
is  attained,  is  the  following,  which  appears  in  the  Mortiing 
Fpst  of  March  1 779 : — 

A  GENTLEMAN  of  Fortune,  whom  Family  reasons  oblige  to  drop 
a  connection  which  has  for  some  time  subsisted  between  him  and 
an  agreeable  young  Lady,  will  give  a  considerable  sum  of  Money  with 
her  to  any  Gentleman,  or  person  in  genteel  Business,  who  has  good 
•enie  and  resolution  to  despise  the  censures  of  the  World,  and  will  enter 
vrith  her  into  the  Holy  state  of  Matrimony.  Letters  addressed  to  Mr 
G.  "VL,  at  the  Cecil  Street  CoSee-House,  will  be  paid  due  attention  to. 

As  this  kind  of  arrangement  has  not  yet  fallen  into 
desuetude,  although  the  aid  of  advertisements  is  no  longer 
invoked  for  it,  we  had  better  not  give  an  opinion  about  its 
moiality»  though  it  is  but  fair  to  admit  that  if  the  system  of 
telluQg  soiled  goods,  of  which  the  foregoing  is  an  example, 


^ 


230  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 

had  but  been  out  of  date,  we  should  have  been  loud  in  our 
objections.  For  no  vice  is  so  bad  as  one  that  has  exploded, 
and  the  weaknesses  which  we  can  regard  willi  complacency 
while  they  are  current,  cause  strong  emotions  of  disgust 
when,  their  day  being  over,  we  look  back  upon  them,  an 
wonder  how  people  could  have  been  so  extremely  wicke 
About  the  same  lime,  and  in  the  same  paper,  is  another 
application  of  a  peculiar  nature,  though  in  this  instance  the 
advertiser  wishes  not  to  part  with,  but  to  obtain  a  similar 
commodity  to  that  advertised  by  G.  H.     This  is  it : — 


I 


^ 


A  SINGLE  Gentleman  of  Fortune,  who  lives  in  a  genteel  private  styl< 
is  desirous  of  meeting  with  an  agreeable  genteel  young  Lady, 
from  20  lo  30  years  of  age,  not  older,  to  superintend  and  lake  ujion' 
her  tlic  management  of  his  House  and  Servants,  for  which  slic  will  b« 
comjilimented  with  hoftrd^  &c.     As  the  situation  will  be  quite  genlcci 
it  will  not  suit  any  but  such  who  has  had  a  liberal  Education,  and  «-h< 
has  some  independance  of  her  own,  so  as  lo  enable  her  al\vnys  lo  appear' 
very  gcnLcel,  and  as  a  rcla'ion  or  particular  friend,  in  which  character 
she  will  always  be  esteemed,  and  have  every  respect  paid  her,  so  as  to^H 
render  the  situation  and  every  thing  else  as  agreeable  as  possible  |H 

Any  lady  inclining  lo  the  above,  will  please  to  direct  wtlli  name  and' 
address,  to  M.  IL  Lsq.,  to  be  left  at  No.  7,  the  Bookseller's,  in  Gr«at 
Newport  Street,  near  St  Martin's  Lane ;  she  will  be  waited  on,  or 
wrote  to,  but  with  tbe  greatest  delicacy,  and  every  dqjree  of  strict  honour 
and  secrecy.  -^m 

Strict  honour  and  secrecy  seems  to  be  an  essential  to  the^ 
siiccessful  completion  of  the  designs  of  many  advertisers  of 
this  time,  but  they  are  to  be  all  on  one  side,  in  company 
with  an  amount  of  blind  credulity  which  would  be  wonderful^ 
if  it  were  not  repeatedly  exhibited  in  modem  days.     Her^H 
is  an  honourable  and  secret  venture  which  appears  in  the 
^/tf^«///g- /'(^j/ of  December  17,  1779,  and  which  was  doubt- 
less very  successful : — 


A  GENTLE^L\N  who  knows  a  Method  which  reduces  it  almott 
■**■  lo  a  certainty  lo  obtain  a  very  considerable  sum.  by  insuring  of 
Numbers  In  Ibe  Lottery,  is  advised  by  his  Friends  to  oSer  to  communi- 


I 


A 


THE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED,  231 

cate  it  to  tbose  who  visb  to  speculate  in  that  Way.  The  advantage 
that  U  procured  by  proceeding  according  to  his  Principles  and  Directions, 
trill  be  plainly  demonstrated  and  made  perfectly  evident  to  any  who 
diuse*  to  be  infonned  of  it.  The  terms  are  Ten  Guineas  each  person, 
and  they  must  engage  not  to  discover  the  plan  for  the  space  of  eighteen 
months.  If  those  who  are  willing  to  agree  to  the  above  terms  will 
be  pleased  to  address  a  line  to  J-  R.  C.  at  the  Union  Coffee-House, 
Corahill,  or  the  York  Coffee  House,  St  James's  Street,  they  will  be 
immediately  informed  where  to  apply.  Those  who  have  lost  money 
already  (by  laying  it  out  improperly)  insuring  of  Numbers,  may  soon  be 
convinced  how  much  it  will  be  to  their  advantage  to  apply  as  above. 

N.B. — This  advertisement  will  be  inserted  in  this  morning's  Paper 
only. 

A  suspicious  person  would  have  fancied  that  the  friends 
of  J.  R.  C,  unless  they  were  dissimilar  from  other  friends, 
would  have  used  the  information  for  their  own  benefit — but 
generous  and  self-abnegating  people  do  turn  up  in  history 
in  the  most  unexpected  and  unaccountable  ways.  Another 
specimen  of  the  secret  and  honourable  kind,  though  in  it  the 
secrecy  and  honour  have  to  be  on  the  side  of  the  advertiser, 
follows.  It  is  in  the  Morning  Post,  April  18,  1780,  and 
runs  thus : — 

ANY  Lady  whose  Situation  may  require  a  Temporary  Retirement,  may 
■**-  be  accommodated  agreeable  to  her  wishes  in  the  house  of  a  Gentle- 
man of  eminence  in  the  Profession,  where  honour  and  secrecy  may  be 
depended  on,  and  where  every  vestige  of  Pregnancy  is  obliterated;  or 
any  Lady  who  wishes  to  become  Pregnant  may  have  the  causes  of 
sterility  removed  in  the  safest  manner.  Letters  (Post-paid)  addressed 
to  A.  B.  No.  23,  Fleet  Street,  will  be  attended  to. 

A.  B.  offers  a  double  convenience,  the  second  item  in 
which  is  well  worthy  of  note.  The  house  must  have  been 
somewhat  similar,  except  that  the  accommodation  was  for 
human  beings,  to  those  establishments  advertisements  in 
connection  with  which  frequently  appear  in  the  sporting  and 
agricultural  papers.  Much  about  the  same  date  as  the  speci- 
men just  quoted  appears  another  of  quite  a  different  kind, 
inserted  in  several  journals.     It  is  rather  unique  as  a  way 


2y. 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


of  reminding  customers  that  life  is  short  and  debt  is  long 
and  is  suspiciously  sartorial : — 


To  WHOM  IT  MAY  CONCERN. 

T3ICHARD  Guy  returns  thanks  to  all  his  good  old  Friends  forthdr 
''^  *-  kind  Recommendation,  which  he  wilt  always  acknowledge  with 
gratitude,  by  being  ready  to  oblige  them  on  all  occasions,  but  earnestly 
desires  to  settle  Accounts,  to  pay  and  to  be  paid  ;  which  he  hopes  will 
be  of  satiKfaction  to  both  parties ;  for  as  it  is  fully  observed,  ihoit 
Reckonings  keep  long  Friends;  so  to  preserve  good  friendship  and  pre- 
vent disputes  in  Accompts  he  always  pays  ready  Money,  that  is  doing 
as  he  would  be  done  unto. 

N,B. — He  courts  neither  Honour  nor  Riches,  his  whole  and  so! 
motive  being  to  senre  his  good  old  Friends ;  the  sin  of  Ingratitude 
utterly  abhors. 


1 

I 


ng     I 

4 


^ 


The  shameless  manner  in  which  sinecures  in  Govern- 
ment offices  were  bought  and  sold  even  so  late  as  17S1  is 
shown  by  the  following  specimen  advertisement,  which  is 
taken  from  the  Mifrm/i£:  Herald  o{  September  22  : — 

A  GENTLEMAN  of  Character  who  wishes  for  some  Employ  nnder 
•^~*-  Government  merely  for  the  sake  ol  Amusement,  would  be  willing 
to  advance  any  Nobleman  or  Gentleman  the  sum  of  Three  Thousand 
Pound.*,  upon  Mortgage,  upon  legal  Interest,  provided  the  Mortgager 
will,  thro'  his  Interest,  procure  a  place  in  any  genteel  Department, 
where  the  emoluments  are  not  le<%s  than  two  or  three  hundred  Pounds 
fifrartHum.  The  Advertiser  flatters  himself  this  will  not  be  deemed 
an  ineligible  Offer,  if  compared  with  tlie  present  mode  of  raising  Money 
upon  Annuities ;  as  a.  gentleman  must  be  obliged  to  grant  five  hundred 
/vr  annum  out  of  his  income  to  raise  the  like  Sum.  If  any  Gentleman 
who  may  be  inclined  to  answer  this  Advertisement  docs  not  know  of 
any  Vacancy,  the  Advertiser  will  point  out  several,  which  maybe  easily 
procured  by  interest.  A  line  addressed  to  S.  X.  to  \k  left  at  the  bar 
of  the  Chillier  Coffee-house,  St  Paul's,  will  be  attended  to.  Secrecy 
may  be  dejicnded  on.     No  Broker  will  be  treated  with. 

Those  were  happy  times,  indeed,  when  no  such  vulgar 
thing  as  merit  was  allowed  to  interfere  with  a  man's  upward 
progress  in  life,  provided  he  possessed  capital,  which  could 
always  secure  him  good  interest  in  more  ways  than  one 


v. 


THE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED. 


233 


^foney  was  at  full  value  then,  and  the  following,  from  the 
Morning  Post  of  October  18,  17S1,  is  one  among  many 
endeavours  to  obtain  it  in  larger  or  smaller  quantities  ; — 

^17ANTED  immediately,  or  as  soon  as  can  be  met  wilh,  that 
*  *  invaluable  acquisition  (when  once  gained)  A  Sincere  Friend, 
by  a  person  who  in  the  early  part  of  his  life  had  mrvny  ;  but  who,  from 
the  all-powerful  hand  of  Death  ami  other  fortuitous  incidents,  has  been 
deprived  of  all  those  whom  he  could  once  call  by  that  sacred  Name, 
and  to  whom  he  could  apply  either  for  Counsel  or  Assistance.  The 
author  of  this  Advertisement  la  a  Middlc-nged  man,  in  a  genteel  situa- 
tion of  Life,  a  Housekeeper,  has  a  decent  Income,  but  yet.  is  so  circum- 
■tflDced  as  to  have  a  particular  occasion  fnr  Finw^  or  SIXTY  Pounds 
for  a  Year  and  a  half  or  thereabouts.  He  wishes  therefore  to  meet  with 
a  Person  of  liberal  and  generous  Sentiments,  who  would  assist  him  with 
the  above  trifling  Sum,  lie  flattens  himself  he  can  make  the  roo>Je 
cf  payment  quite  agreeable  to  any  Gentleman,  Lady,  or  Tradesman  of 
credit,  who  may  1>e  induced  to  answer  this  advertisement  from  a  motive 
arising  from  tlic  secret  satisfaction  there  is  in  rendering  a  Service. — 
A  line  directed  for  S.  E.,  and  left  at  ihc  Morning  Post  Office,  will  be 
immediately  attended  to. 

In  1785  was  established  the  Daily  Universal  Repsicr^  a 
paper  which  was,  under  a  new  title,  adopted  in  1788,  to 
develop  into  the  greatest  and  most  powerful  organ  in  the 
world.  On  the  ist  of  January,  in  the  last-named  year,  the 
^^^■^/V/^  appeared  with  the  following  heading:  The  Times ^ 
or  Daily  Univrrsa!  Re<^5ter^  printed  Logographically .  The 
price  was  threepence,  and  for  many  years  the  Times  gave 
no  promise  of  future  greatness  ;  but  it  was  always  fearless, 
and  very  early  was  fined,  while  its  editor  narrowly  escaped 
imprisoninent.  In  1790  Mr  Walter  was  actually  incarcer- 
ated in  Newgate,  where  he  remained  sixteen  months, 
besides  being  lined  ^200,  for  a  libel  on  the  Dukes  of  Vork 
and  Clarence.  He  was  released  eventually  at  the  inter- 
cession of  the  Prince  of  Wales.  The  history  of  the  Times 
has  been  told  so  often  tliat  particulars  are  hardly  needed 
here  ;  but  as  showii>g  how  its  present  eminence  is  due  to 
nothing  but  perseverance  and  integrity,  as  well  as  the  ever- 


i 


I 


?54 


mSTOKY  OF  ADVERTJ^ING, 


present  desire  to  be  first  wherever  possible,  we  quote  ihc 
following  from  a  sliort  notice  of  the  life  of  one  of  its  proprie- 
tors :  "  It  was  under  John  Walter  II.,  bom  in  1 784,  that  the 
Times  rose  to  the  place  of  the  first  newspaper  in  the  world, 
Whilst  yet  a  youth,  in  1803  he  became  joint  proprietor  and 
sole  manager  of  the  TittuSj  and  very  soon  his  hand  became 
manifest  in  the  vigour  and  independence  of  its  politics, 
and  the  freshness  of  its  news.  Free  speech,  however,  had 
its  penalties.  The  Times  denounced  the  malpractices  of 
Lord  Melville,  and  the  Government  revenged  itself  by 
withdrawing  from  the  Walters  the  office  of  printers  to  the 
Customs,  which  had  been  held  by  the  family  for  eightcea 
years.  During  the  war  between  Napoleon  and  Austria  in 
1805,  the  desire  for  news  was  intense.  To  thwart  the 
Tiwes  the  packets  for  Walter  were  stopped  at  the  outports, 
while  those  for  the  ministerial  journals  were  hurried  10 
Ix)ndon.  Complaint  was  made,  and  the  reply  was  givea^ 
that  the  editor  might  receive  his  foreign  papers  as  a/tj?v»r»"M 
meaning  thereby  that  if  the  Government  was  gracious  to 
the  Times,  the  Times  should  be  gracious  to  the  Govern- 
ment ;  but  Walter  would  accept  no  favour  on  such  terms. 
Thrown  on  his  own  resources,  he  contrived,  by  means  of 
superior  activity  and  stratagem,  to  surpass  the  ministry  in 
early  intelligence  of  events.  The  capitulation  of  FlushinJ^« 
in  August  1809,  was  announced  by  the  Times  two  daysfl 
before  the  news  had  arrived  through  any  other  channel. 
In  the  editorship  of  the  paper  he  spared  neither  pains  nor 
expense.  The  best  writers  were  employed,  and  wherever 
a  correspondent  or  a  reporter  displayed  marked  ability,  h«H 
was  carefully  looked  after  and  his  faculty  utilised.  CorJ| 
respondents  were  posted  in  every  great  city  in  the  world, 
and  well-qualified  reporters  were  despatched  to  every  scene 
of  public  interest.  The  debates  in  Parliament,  law  pro- 
ceedings, public  meetings,  and  commercial  affairs,  were  all 
reported  with  a  fulness  and  accuracy  which  filled  readers 
with  wonder.    What  a  visionary  could  scarcely  dare  to  a«k| 


THE 


^y,' 


TIMES 


Lr££^r=:£r25c 


I    ■■ -ntr  ^  rj  ./^    ^~^      \!^i»:.~iT    ' ^»i  Ww-wVw^^^ 


«lCTU<t.LI*C    Of'IC* 


•  aiv  rurt  aim 


^^^ 


[■■■Ma*  ^ttjjKjt^* 


.-or 


;&',rx*. 


r«  «•  iirr 


■k  o.  M  V  y.— p»^.  -ij  >J  b  ^iH 

rV  !■■■  <r*Ciii*  ■••*•« 


>w->->  Av...  ruL  « »,-.>  a«>.k< 


■  ■I*  •,  ■  — -  T~*"  — *    t  —■  ■^     .  'A*  ■•  *  K  I*  >»g I  M^  ■■  art* 


««it:[';jr  ff/fl   konut 


>■    ^  uti«  mill  k-KstB  wtaM 


u«aA' 


^|vaM«*noDt0  w  oo  a^  •> 


r  ■■  *_    ^        ■    IW  *  ap^T-ri 


JAM  If  Mil—  B  K   »BHi»^  *^3l 


ii«vr  epffici. 

TWtr>-i-fi#.-,  .^r    ^r** 


l«  V  t    u  >  f  iCI 


>«'  -«  u  ^.^  .  .J  .*«»  a  j^ 


E«rt,  at*  a^  ^2.  i*^  tf  *.  ^ 

-    -  "i  ■  -I    I  r-j  I  T  ■  I  I    II 

■Mtl*»l«     II  ■!  —    I  flt—^ 


4- j*-     Tfc  ■W.^wrt^  uw 
III  1^  1 1  in  I    ■.^^■I^taMwi 


ilg 


THE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED,  235 

Ihc  Tim^s  gave.  To  other  journals  imitation  alone  was 
left.  They  might  be  more  consistent  politicians,  but  in 
iJje  staple  of  a  newspaper,  to  be  nearly  as  good  as  the 
Times  was  their  highest  praise." 

So  much  for  the  early  struggles  of  the  **  Thunderer ''—a 
title  given  to  it  from  the  powerful  articles  contributed  to  it 
by  Edward  Stirling- — and  as  its  later  efforts  in  the  cause  of 
justice  are  sliown  in  the  Times  scholarships  at  Oxford,  as 
its  very  appearance  betokens  its  vast  importance,  and  as 
its  history  has  been  given  by  many  much  abler  pens  than 
ours,  we  will  return  to  our  subject. 

In  179S,  a  house  in  Stanhope  Street  having  been  broken 
open  and  robbed,  the  following  singular  announcement 
•was  issued  by  the  proprietor,  and  appeared  in  the  Daily 
Advertiser : — 

ly^^  R.  R of  Stanhope  Street,  presents  his  most  respectful  Com- 

■l-' -*■  plimcnts  to  the  Gentlemen  who  did  him  the  honour  of  eating  a 
ouple  (»f  roasted  Chickens,  drinkinfj  sundry  tankards  of  ale,  and  three 
botllex  of  old  Madeira  at  his  house,  on  Monday  night. 

In  their  haste  they  took  away  the  Tankard,  to  which  they  are  heartily 
welcome  ;  to  the  Tablespoons  and  the  li^ht  Guineas  which  were  in  an 
old  red  murocco  puckct*book,  they  are  also  heartily  welcome  ;  but  in 
the  said  Pocket-book  there  u'ere  several  loose  Papers,  which  consisted 
of  private  Memorandums,  Receipts,  etc.  can  be  of  no  use  to  his  kind 
and  friendly  Visitors,  but  are  important  to  him  :  he  therefore  hopes 
and  tnists  they  will  be  so  polite  as  to  take  some  opportunity  of  re- 
turning them. 

For  an  old  family  Watch,  which  was  in  the  same  Drawer,  he  cannot 
Ask  on  the  same  terms  ;  but  if  any  could  he  pointed  out  by  which  he 
could  replace  it  with  twice  as  mnny  heavy  Guineas  as  they  can  get  fur 
it,  he  would  gladly  be  the  Purchaser.  W.  K. 

A  few  nights  after,  a  packet,  with  the  fallowing  letter 
enclosed,  was  dropped  into  the  area  of  the  house:  "Sir, — 
You  are  qtiite  a  gemman.  Not  being  used  to  your  Madeira, 
it  got  into  our  upper  works,  or  we  should  never  have 
cribbed  your  papers;  they  be  all  marched  back  again  with 
Ihe  red  book.     Your  ale  was  mortal  good ;   the  tankard 


23* 


///SrOA'V  Of  ADVERTISING, 


and  spoons  were  made  into  a  white  soup,  in  Dulce's  Pla 
two  hours  afore  daylite.  The  old  family  watch  cas 
were  at  the  same  time  made  into  a  brown  gravy,  and 
guts,  new  christened,  are  on  their  voyage  to  Holland, 
they  had  not  been  transported,  you  should  have  them  agai; 
for  you  are  quite  the  gemman  ;  but  you  know,  as  they  have 
been  christened,  and  got  a  new  name,  they  would  no  longer 
be  of  your  old  family.  And  see,  sir,  we  have  notiiing  more 
to  say,  but  that  we  are  much  obligated  to  you,  and  shall 
be  glad  to  sarve  and  visit  you,  by  nite  or  by  day,  and  are 
your  humble  sarvants  to  command."'  Honour  had  then, 
it  would  appear,  not  quite  departed  from  among  thieves. 

At  the  end  of  last  century  a  provincial  attorney  advertised 
an  estate  for  sale,  or  to  be  exchanged  for  another,  stating 
that  he  was  appointed  Plenipotentiary  to  treat  in  the  busi- 
ness ;  that  he  had  ample  credentials^  and  was  prepared  to 
ratify  his  pmvers ;  that  he  would  enter  into  preliminaries 
cither  upon  the  principle  of  the  slatti  quo  or  uti  possiddis  ; 
that  he  was  ready  to  receive  ihe  project  of  any  x>erson 
desirous  to  make  the  purchase  or  exchange,  and  to  deliver 
his  eontre projet  and  sine  qit'h  non,  and,  indeed,  at  once  giv 
his  ultimatum^  assuring  the  public  that  as  soon  as  zdefiniii 
treaty  should  be  concluded^  it  would  be  ratified  by  his  con 
slituent  and  duly  guaranteed.  He  was  evidently  astonish 
at  his  own  unexpected  importance. 

Some  curious  and  amusing  statistics  of  advertising  in  th 
second  year  of  this  century  are  given  by  Mr  Daniel  .Stuart»  at 
one  time  co-proprietor  of  the  Afomin^  Post  \w\i}\  Coleridge, 
when  it  was  in  the  meridian  of  its  fame.  He  says:  "Th( 
Morning  Herald  and  the  TimeSy  then  leading  papers,  w 
neglected,  and  the  Morning  Post,  by  vigilance  and  activi 
rose  rapidly.  Advertisements  flowed  in  beyond  bounds.  I 
encounqed  the  small  miscellaneous  advertisements  in  the 
front  page,  preferring  them  to  any  others,  upon  the  rule  that 
the  more  numerous  the  customers,  the  more  independent 
and  permanent  the  custom.     Besides  numerous  and  various 


he™ 

at 


THE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED, 


437 


advertisements,  I  interest  numerous  and  various  readers  look- 
ing out  for  employment,  servants,  sales,  and  purchasers,  etc 
etc.  Advertisements  act  and  react.  They  attract  rcaders,pro- 
iDote  circulation,  and  circulation  attracts  advertisements.  The 
Daily  Advertiser^  which  sold  to  the  public  for  twopence  half- 
penny, after  paying  a  stamp-duty  of  ihree-halfpence,  never  had 
more  than  half  a  column  of  news  ;  it  never  noticed  Parlia- 
ment, but  it  had  the  best  foreign  intelligence  before  the  French 
Revolution.  The  Daily  Advertiser  lost  by  its  publication, 
but  it  gained  largely  by  its  advertisements,  with  which  it  was 
crammed  full.  Shares  in  it  sold  by  auction  at  twenty  years* 
purchase.  I  recollect  my  brother  Peter  saying,  that  on  pro- 
posing to  a  tradesman  to  lake  shares  in  a  new  paper,  lie 
was  answered  with  a  sneer  and  a  shake  of  the  head — *  Ah  ! 
none  of  you  can  touch  the  Daily  I '  It  was  the  paper  of 
business,  filled  with  miscellaneous  advertisements,  con- 
ducted at  little  expense,  very  profitable,  and  taken  in  by  all 
public-houses,  coffee-houses,  etc.»  but  by  scarcely  any 
private  families.  It  fell  in  a  day  by  the  scheme  of  Grant, 
a  printer,  which  made  all  publicans  proprietors  of  a  rival, 
the  Morning  Advertiser^  the  profits  going  to  a  publicans' 
benefit  society;  and  they,  of  course,  took  in  their  own  paper ; 
— an  example  of  the  danger  of  depending  on  any  class. 
Soon  after  I  joined  the  Morning  Posi^  in  the  autumn  of 
1795,  Christie,  the  auctioneer,  left  it,  on  account  of  its  low 
sale,  and  left  a  blank,  a  ruinous  proclamation  of  decHne. 
But  in  1S03  he  came  to  me  again,  praying  for  readmission. 
At  that  time  particular  newspapers  were  known  fco  possess 
particular  classes  of  advertisements:  llie  Morning  Post, 
horses  and  carriages  ;  the  Public  Ledger^  shipping  and  sales 
of  wholesale  foreign  merchandise ;  the  Morning  Herald  and 
Times,  auctioneers ;  the  Morning  Chronicle,  books.  AU 
papers  had  all  sorts  of  advertisements,  it  is  true,  but  some 
were  more  remarkable  than  others  for  a  particular  class, 
and  Mr  Perry,  who  aimed  at  making  the  Morning  Chronicle 
a  very  literary  paper,  took  pains  to  produce  a  striking  dis- 


N 


23S  J//S70RY  OF  ADVERTISING, 

play  of  book  advertisements.     This  display  had  sometnm^ 
more  solid  for  its  object  than  vanity.     Sixty  or  seventy  shon 
advertisements,  filling  ihrce  columns,  by  Longman,  one  day, 
by   Cadell,  etc.,   another — *  Bless  me,  what  an    extensive 
business  they  must  have!'     The  auctioneers  to  this  day 
stipulate  to  have  all  their  advertisements  inserted  at  once, 
that  they  may  impress  the  public  with  great  ideas  of  their 
extensive  business.     They  will  not  have  them  dribbled  ou^ 
a  few  at  a  time,  as  the  days  of  sale  approach.     The  jomi 
have  of  bte  years  adopted  the  same  rule  with   the  sam^ 
design.      They  keep    back    advertisements,    fill   up    will 
pamphlets,  and  other  stuff  unnecessary  to  a   newspaper|_ 
and  then  come  out  with  a  swarm  of  advertisements  in 
double  sheet  to  astonish  their  readers,  and  strike  them  wil 
high  ideas  of  the  extent  of  their  circulation,  which  atti 
so  many  advertisers.     The  meagre  days  are  forgotten,  tl 
days  of  swarm  arc  remembered." 

In  the  same  gossiping  manner  Stuart  speaks  again  of  this 
rage  for  swarming  advertisements  :  *'  The  booksellers  and 
others  crowded  to  the  Mornin^^ Pcst^  when  its  circulation  and 
character  raised  it  above  all  competitors.     Each  was  desir- 
ous of  having  his  cloud  of  advertisements  inserted  at  once 
in  the  front  page.     I  would  not  drive  away  the  short,  miscel- 
laneous advertisements  by  allowing  space  to  be  monopolised 
by  any  class.     When  a  very  long  advertisement  of  a  column 
or  two  came,  I  charged  enormously  high,  that  it  miglit  be 
taken  away  without  the  parties  being  able   to  say  it  was 
refused  admission.    I  accommodated  the  booksellers  as  w( 
as  I  could  with  a  few  new  and  pressing  adverusements 
a  time.     That  would  not  do :  they  would  have  the  cloud! 
then,  said  I,  there  is  no  place  for  the  cloud  but  the  1; 
page,  where  the  auctioneers  already  enjoy  that  privilege.     , 
The  booksellers  were  affronted,  indignant.     The  last  p^igejH 
To  obtain  the  accommodation  refused  by  the  Morning  Pos^^ 
they  set  up  a  morning  paper,  the  British  Press;  and  to  op- 
pose the  Cdttrier,  an  evening  one — the  Globe,     Possessed 


tsas 
la^^ 


THE  EDUCATION  COMPLETED,  239 

general  influence  among  literary  men,  could  there  be  a 
doubt  of  success  ?"  The  Glebe  has  stood  the  test  of  time, 
and  though  it  has  seen  vicissitudes,  and  has  changed  its 
politics  within  recent  years,  it  now  seems  as  firmly  estab- 
lished as  any  of  its  contemporaries  that  is  independent  of 
connection  with  a  morning  paper. 

_  We  have  now  reached  the  end  of  our  journey  so  far  as  the 
education  of  advertisers  and  the  development  of  advertise- 
ments are  concemeiL  By  the  commencement  of  the  present 
century  matters  were  very  nearly  as  we  find  them  now ;  and 
so  in  the  following  chapters  only  those  examples  which  have 
peculiar  claims  to  attention  will  be  submitted. 


ADVERTISEMENTS  of  the  kind  which  form  the  sub? 
x\  ject  of  this  chapter  have  been  so  often  made 
matter  of  comment  and  speculation,  have  so  often  received 
the  attention  of  essayists  and  the  ridicule  of  comic  writers, 
that  it  is  hard  to  keep  out  of  the  beaten  track,  and  to  find 
anything  fresh  to  say  upon  a  topic  which  seems  utterly 
exhausted.  Yet  the  store  of  fun  is  so  great,  and  the  ex- 
cellence of  many  old  and  new  stories  so  undoubted,  thai 
courage  is  easily  found  for  this  the  most  difticult  part  of  the 
present  work.  Difficult,  because  there  is  an  embarrassment 
of  riches,  an  enormous  mine  of  wealth,  at  command,  and 
the  trouble  is  not  what  to  put  in,  but  what  to  leave  out, 
from  a  chapter  on  quaint  and  curious  advertisements. 
Difficult  again,  because  some  of  the  best  stories  have  been 
told  in  so  many  and  such  various  guises,  that  until  arriving 
at  the  ends  it  is  hard  to  tell  they  have  a  common  ori 
and  then  the  claims  of  each  version  are  as  near  as  possib! 
equal  There  is,  however,  a  way  out  of  all  difhcuities 
tlie  way  in  this  is  to  verify  the  advertisements  themselvi 
and  pay  no  attention  to  the  apocrypha  to  which  they  give 
rise ;  and  though  it  is  a  tedious  proceeding,  and  one  which 
shows  litde  in  return  for  the  pains  taken,  it  may  be  soroe- 
tliing  to  our  readers  to  know,  that  curious  as  many  of  the 
specimens  given  arc,  they  arc  real  and  original,  and  that  in 
the  course  of  our  researches  we  have  unearthed  many 
impostures  in  the  way  of  quotations  from  advertisements 


ib^H 


^/^/Oi 


^RJOUS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS,  241 

:h  have  never  yet  appeared,  unless  private  views  of  still 

e  private  copies  of  papers  have  been  allowed  their 
nulgators.  There  is,  after  all,  little  reason  for  a  display 
Dventive  power,  for  the  real  material  is  so  good,  and 
^  so  natural,  as  to  completely  put  the  finest  fancy  to  a 
dvantage.  It  has  already  been  remarked  that  in  the 
le  range  of  periodical  literature  there  is  no  greater 
osity  than  the  columns  daily  devoted  to  advertisements 
le  Times,  From  them,  says  a  writer  a  few  years  back, 
e  future  historian  will  be  able  to  glean  ample  and 
ect  information  relative  to  the  social  habits,  wants,  and 
iliaritics  of  this  empire.  How  we  travel,  by  land  or  sea 
E)w  we  live,  and  move,  and  have  our  being — is  fully  set 
■in  the  different  announcements  which  ap])car  in  a 
■copy  of  that  journal.  The  means  of  gratifying  the 
BK)undless  desires,  or  the  most  fastidious  taste,  are 
TO  within  the  knowledge  of  any  one  who  chooses  to 
^ilt  its  crowded  columns.  Should  a  man  wish  to  make 
fcursion  to  any  part  of  the  globe  between  Cape  Horn 
Poe  North  Pole,  to  any  port  in  India,  to  Australia,  to 
ca,  or  to  China,  he  can,  by  the  aid  of  one  number  of 
Times^  make  his  arrangements  over  his  breakfast.  In 
first  column  he  will  find  which  'A  i  fine,  fast-sailing, 
jcr-bottomed '  vessel  is  ready  to  take  hira  to  any  of 

k distant  ports.     Or,  should  his  travelling  aspirations 
ft  less  extended  nature,  he  can  inform  himself  of  the 
,  size,  horse-power,  times  of  starting,  and  fares,  of 
iberless  steamers  which  ply  within  the  limits  of  British 

^^Vhethe^,  in  short,  he  wishes  to  be  conveyed  five 
from  London  to  Greenwich — or  three  thousand — 
iverjiool  to  New  York — information  equally  con- 
is  afforded  him.  The  head  of  the  second,  or  some- 
%  the  third  column,  is  interesting  to  a  more  extensive 
[C  of  readers — namely,  to  the  curious  ;  for  it  is  generally 
tted  to  what  may  be  called  the  romance  of  advertising, 
■dvertiseraents  which  appear  in  that  place  are  rays- 


i 


24J 


lUSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


terious  as  melodramas,  and  puzzling  as  rebuses."  These 
incentives  to  curiosity  will  receive  attention  a  little  further 
on  ;  meanwhile  wc  will  turn  lo  those  which  are  purely 
curious  or  eccentric. 

The  record  of  these  notices  to  the  public  is  so  extensive, 
and  its  ramifications  so  multifarious,  that  so  tir  as  those 
advertisements  which  simply  contain  blunders  are  concerned, 
we  must  be  satisfied  with  a  simple  summary,  and  in  many 
cases  leave  our  readers  to  make  their  own  comments.  Here 
is  a  batch  of  those  whose  comicality  is  mainly  dependent 
upon  sins  against  the  rules  of  English  composition.  Wc 
will  commence  with  the  reward  oflTcrcd  for  "  a  keyless  lady's 
gold  watch,"  which  is,  though,  but  a  faint  echo  of  the  "  green 
lady's  parasol"  and  the  "brown  silk  gentleman's  umbrella" 
anecdotes ;  but  the  former  we  give  as  actually  having 
appeared,  while  so  far  the  two  latter  require  verification. 
A  lady  advertises  her  desire  to  obtain  a  husband  with  "a 
Roman  nose  having  strong  religious  tendencies."  A  nose 
with  heavenly  tendencies  we  can  imagine,  but  even  then  it 
would  not  be  Roman.  "  A  spinster  particularly  fond  of 
children,"  informs  the  public  that  she  "  wishes  for  two  or 
three  having  none  of  her  own."  Then  a  dissenter  from 
grammar  as  well  as  from  the  Church  Established  wants  **a 
young  man  to  look  after  a  horse  of  the  Methodist  per- 
suasion ;"  a  draper  desires  to  meet  with  an  assistant  who 
would  **  take  an  active  and  energetic  interest  in  a  small  first- 
class  trade,  and  in  a  quiet  family;"  and  a  chemist  re- 
that  '*  the  gentleman  who  left  his  stomach  for  analys;  . 
please  call  and  get  it,  together  with  the  result"  Theaincai 
papers  actually  teem  with  advertisements  which,  either  from 
technology  or  an  ignorance  of  literary  law,  are  extremely 
funny,  and  sometimes  alarming,  and  even  the  editorial 
minds  seem  at  times  to  catch  the  infection.  One  of  these 
journals,  in  a  putT  preliminary  of  a  benefit,  after  announc- 
ing the  names  of  the  performers  and  a  list  of  the  perform- 
ances, went  oa  :  "  Of  course  every  one  will  be  there,  and 


CURIOUS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS.  243 

r  the  edification  of  those  who  are  absent,  a  full  report 
ill  be  found  in  our  next  paper."  This  is  worthy  of  a  place 
any  collection  :  "  One  pound  reward — Lost,  a  cameo 
rooch,  representing  Venus  and  Adonis  on  the  Drumcondra- 
iroad,  about  ten  o'clock,  on  Tuesday  evening."  And  so 
ts  this :  "  The  advertiser,  having  made  an  advantageous 
purchase,  offers  for  sale,  on  very  low  terms,  about  six  dozen 
of -prime  port  wine,  late  the  property  of  a  gentleman  forty 
)'ears  of  age,  full  in  the  body  and  with  a  high  bouquet." 
The  lady  spoken  of  in  the  following  would  meet  with  some 
attention  from  the  renowned  Barnum  :  '*  To  be  sold  cheap, 
ft  splendid  grey  horse,  calculated  for  a  charger,  or  would 
carry  a  lady  with  a  switch  tail."  But  she  would  find  a  for- 
midable rival  in  the  gentleman  whose  advertisement  we 
place  as  near  as  possible,  so  as  to  make  a  pair :  "  To  be 
Bold  cheap,  a  mail  phaeton,  the  property  of  a  gentleman 
vith  a  moveable  head,  as  good  as  new."  Stutlents  of  vivi- 
section, and  lovers  of  natural  history  generally,  would  have 
been  glad  to  meet  with  this  specimen  of  life  after  decapita- 
tion :  •*  Ten  shillings  reward — Lost  by  a  gentleman,  a  white 
terrier  dog,  except  the  head,  which  is  black."  And  as 
congenial  company  we  append  this  :  *'  To  be  sold,  an  Erard 
grand  piano,  the  property  of  a  lady,  about  to  travel  in  a 
walnut  wood  case  with  carved  legs." 

Differing  somewhat,  though  still  of  the  same  kind,  is  the 
advertisement  of  a  governess,  who,  among  other  things, 
notifies  that  **  she  is  a  perfect  mistress  of  her  own  tongue." 
If  she  means  what  she  says,  she  deserves  a  good  situation 
and  a  high  rate  of  wages.  An  anecdote  is  told  of  a  wealthy 
widow  who  advertised  for  an  agent,  and,  owing  to  a  printer's 
error,  which  made  it  "a  gent,"  she  was  inundated  with 
applications  by  letter,  and  pestered  by  personal  attentions. 
This  story  requires,  however,  a  little  assistance,  and  may 
be  taken  for  what  it  is  worth.  Not  long  ago,  a  morning 
■paper  contained  an  announcement  that  a  lady  going  abroad 
vould  give  "  a  medical  man  "  ;£ioo  a  year  to  look  after 


244 


mSTORV  OF  ADVERTISING, 


"a  favourite  spaniel  dog"  during  her  absence.  ITiis 
not  be  funny,  but  it  is  certainly  curious,  and  in  these  daj 
when  starvation  and  misery  are  rampant,  when  men 
to  be  found  who  out  of  sheer  love  kill  their  children  rat 
than  tnist  them  to  the  tender  mercies  of  the  parish  offici; 
and  when  these  same  officials  are  proved  guilty  of  com 
live  homicide,  it  is  indeed  noticeable,  A  kindred  adv( 
tisement,  also  real  and  un exaggerated,  asks  for  "  an  accoi 
plished  poodle  nurse.  Wages  £^\  per  week."  This  h 
double  claims  upon  our  attention  here,  for  in  addition 
the  amount  offered  for  such  work,  there  is  a  doubt  as 
the  actual  thing  required.  Is  it  a  nurse  for  accomplishi 
poodles,  or  an  accomplished  nurse?  And,  if  the  latt< 
what  in  the  name  of  goodness  and  common  sense  is  accoi 
plishment  at  such  work?  Do  poodles  require  pcculi 
nursery  rhymes  and  lullabies,  or  are  ihey  nursed,  as  a  \'ulj 
error  has  it  about  West-country  babies,  head  downward; 
This  is  not  the  exact  expression  used  with  regard  to  the 
infants ;  but  it  will  do.  We  i^all  conclude  this  short  list  <rf 
peculiarities  with  two  which  deserve  notice.  The  first  is 
tlie  notice  of  a  marriage,  which  ends,  "  No  cards,  no  cake, 
no  wine."  This  is  evidently  intended  for  friends  other  than 
those  "at  a  distance,"  whose  polite  attention  is  so 
stantly  invoked.  The  remaining  specimen  appeared  in  ll 
Irish  Tima^  and  runs  thus:  "To  Insurance  Offices.- 
Whatever  office  the  late  William  H.  O'Conncll,  M.D. 
was  insured  will  please  to- communicate  or  call  on 
widow,  23  Sonih  Frederick  Street,  without  delay."  Oi 
hardly  knows  which  to  admire  most,  the  style  or  the  inu 
ciancc  of  the  demand. 

Of  curious  advertisements  which  ore  such  independent 
of  errors,  selfishness,  or  moral  obliquity,  we  have  in  the 
purely  historical  part  of  this  work  given  plenty  specimens 
from  olden  limes  ;  but  there  are  still  a  few  samples  of  the 
peculiarities  of  our  ancestors  which  will  bear  repetition 
this  chapter,  more  especially  as  most  of  them   have  n( 


CURIOUS  AND  ECCEiVTS/C  ADVERTISEMENTS.  245 

before  been  unearthed  from  their  original  columns.  Be- 
fore quoting  any  of  those  which  are  purely  advertisements 
in  the  ordinary  sense  of  the  word,  we  will  present  to  cur 
readers  a  curious  piece  of  puffery  which  appeared  in  an 
Irish  paper  for  May  50,  1784,  and  which  from  its  near  con- 
nection with  open  and  palpable  advertising,  and  from  its 
whimsical  character,  will  not  be  at  all  out  of  place,  and 
will  doubtless  prove  interesting,  especially  to  those  of  a 
theatrical  turn  of  mind,  as  it  refers  to  ;he  gifted  Sarah 
Siddons's  first  appearance  in  Dublin,  "^he  article  runs 
thus:  *' On  Saturday,  Mrs  Siddons,  about  whom  all  the 
world  has  been  talking,  exposed  her  beautiful,  adamantine, 
60A,  and  lovely  person,  for  the  first  time,  at  Smock-Alley 
Theatre,  in  the  bewitching,  nieUing,  and  all-tearful  charac- 
ter of  Isabdia.  From  the  repeated  panegyrics  in  the 
impartial  London  newspapers,  we  were  taught  to  expect 
the  sight  of  a  heavenly  angel ;  but  how  were  we  super- 
naturally  surprised  into  the  most  awful  joy,  at  beholding  a 
mortal  goddess.  The  house  was  crowded  with  hundreds 
more  than  it  could  hold, — with  thousands  of  admiring 
spectators,  that  went  away  without  a  sight.  This  extra- 
ordinary phenomenon  of  tragic  excellence !  this  star  of 
Melpomene !  this  comet  of  the  stage  I  this  sun  of  the 
firmament  of  the  Muses  !  this-  moon  of  blank  verse  I  this 
queen  and  princess  of  tears  !  this  DonnelUin  of  the  poisoned 
bowl !  this  empress  of  the  pistol  and  dagger  I  this  chaos  of 
Shakspeare  !  this  world  of  weeping  clouds !  this  Juno  oi 
commanding  aspects  !  this  Terpsichore  of  the  curtains  and 
scenes  !  this  Proserpine  of  fire  and  earthquake  !  this  Kalter- 
fclto  of  wonders  !  exceeded  expectation,  went  beyond  be- 
lief, and  soared  above  all  the  natural  powers  of  description  ! 
She  was  nature  itself!  She  was  the  most  exquisite  work  of 
art  1  She  was  the  very  daisy,  prin^rose,  tuberose,  sweet- 
brier,  fur^e-blossom,  gilliHowcr,  wallflower,  cauliflower, 
auricula,  and  rosemary  !  In  short,  she  was  the  bouquet  of 
Parnassus  I      Where  expectation  was  raised  so  high,  it  was 


246  HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 

thought  she  would  be  injured  by  her  appearance;  but  it 
was  llie  audience  who  were  injured  : — several  fainted  before 
the  curtain  drew  up !  When  she  came  to  the  scene 
parting  with  her  wedding-ring,  ah  I  what  a  siglu  was  thert 
the  very  fiddlers  in  the  orchestra,  *  albeit,  unused  to 
melting  mood,'  blubbered  like  hungry  children  crying  for 
their  bread  and  butter;  and  when  the  bell  rang  for  music 
between  the  acts^  the  tears  ran  from  the  bassoon  playc 
eyes  in  such  plentiful  showers,  that  they  choked  the  fing 
stops ;  and  making  a  spout  of  the  instrument,  poured  in 
such  torrents  on  the  first  fiddler's  book,  that,  not  seei 
the  overture  was  in  t^vo  shari)s,  the  leader  of  the  ban 
actually  played  in  one  flat.  But  the  sobs  and  sighs  of 
the  groaning  audience,  and  the  noise  of  corks  drawn  from 
the  smelling-bottles,  prevented  the  mistake  between  flats 
and  sharps  being  discovered.  One  hundred  and  nine 
ladies  fainted  !  forty-six  went  into  fits  I  and  ninety- 
five  had  strong  hysterics  I  The  world  will  scarcely 
credit  the  truth,  when  they  are  told,  that  fourteen 
children,  five  old  women,  one  hundred  tailors,  and  six 
common-councilmen,  were  actually  drowned  in  the  inunda- 
tion of  tears  tliat  flowed  from  the  galleries,  the  slips,  and 
tiie  boxes,  to  increase  the  briny  pond  in  the  pit ;  thewaler 
was  three  feet  deep ;  and  the  people  that  were  obliged  to 
stand  upon  the  benches,  were  in  that  position  up  to  their 
ankles  in  tears !  An  Act  of  Parliament  against  her  playin, 
any  more  will  certainly  pass.''  As  this  effusion  appear 
almost  immediately  after  the  famous  actress's  first  appear- 
ance, we  are  hardly  wrong  in  considering  it  as  half  an  ad- 
vertisement. It  must  certainly  have  helped  to  draw  good 
houses  during  the  rest  of  her  stay. 

levers  of  the  gentle  craft  may  be  interested  to  know  that 
what  was  perhaps  the  earliest  advertisement  of  Izaak  Wal- 
ton's famous  Htlle  book  "  The  Conipleat  Angler  "  was  pub- 
lished in  one  of  Wharton's  Almanacs.  It  is  on  the  back 
of   the  dedication-leaf  to    "  Hemeroscopeion :  Ann!   J^x^ 


»  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEAfENTS.  447 

iristianje,  1654."  Hemeroscopcion  was  William  Lilly, 
and  the  almanac  appeared  in  165J,  the  year  in  which 
Walton's  book  was  printed.     The  advertisement  says  : — 

There  is  pubKslied  »•  Bookc  of  Eighteen-pence  price,  called  The 
Cffmpleat  Am^Ur,  Or,  The  CottUmphthx  mun's  Rrcreaiian :  being  a 
Discourse  of  Fish  and  Fishing.  Not  unworthy  the  pcrusall.  Sold  by 
Richard  Marriot  in  S,  DunstatCs  Church-yard,  FlceatrtiL 

The  publication  of  births,  marriages,  and  deaths  seems 
to  have  begun  almost  as  soon  as  newspapers  were  in  full 
swing.  At  first  only  the  names  of  tlie  noble  and  eminent 
were  given,  but  soon  the  notices  got  into  much  ihe  same 
form  as  we  now  find  them.  One  advantage  of  the  old 
style  was  that  the  amount  a  man  died  worth  was  generally 
given,  though  how  the  exact  sum  was  known  directly  he 
died  passes  our  comprehension,  unless  it  was  then  the  fashion 
to  give  off  the  secret  with  the  latest  breath.  Even  under 
such  circumstances  we  should  hesitate  to  believe  some 
people  of  our  acquaintance,  who  have  tried  now  and  again, 
but  have  never  yet  succeeded  in  telling  the  truth  about  their 
own  affairs  or  those  of  their  relatives.  And  doubtless  many  an 
heir  felt  sadly  disappointed,  on  taking  his  property,  to  find 
it  amount  to  less  than  half  of  the  published  sum.  Notices 
of  marriages  and  deaths  were  frequent  before  the  announce- 
ment of  births  became  fashionable;  and  in  advertisements 
the  real  order  of  things  has  been  completely  changed,  as 
obituaries  began,  marriages  followed,  and  births  came  last 
of  all.  In  the  first  number  of  the  GttttUman^s  Afat^atine^ 
January  1 73 1,  we  find  deaths  and  marriages  published  under 
separate  heads,  and  many  papers  of  the  time  did  likewise. 
The  Grub  Street  Journal  gave  them  among  the  summary 
of  Domestic  News,  each  particular  item  having  tJie  initials 
of  the  paper  from  which  it  was  taken  appended,  as  was 
done  with  all  other  information  under  the  same  head ;  for 
which  purpose  there  was  at  tlie  top  of  the  article  the  infor- 
mation that  C.  meant  Daily  Couraut^  P.  Daily  Posi-Boy^ 
P,  Daily  Post,  D.  J.  Daily  Journal,  D.  A.  Daily  Adver- 


248 


IITSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


tisir^  S.  J.  St  James's  Evening  Pasty  W.  E.  Whitehall  EvenU 
Posty  and  L.  E.  London  Evening  Post,  la  the  number  fc 
February  7,  1734,  we  find  this  : — 

jDi>(/ last  night  at  his  habitation  in  PallniaU,  in  a  very  advanced 
age,    count  Kiimanscck,   who  came  over   from   Haiiovcr  with  King 

George  I.   S.J. At  his  lodgings.   L.E,D,  A.Feb,  i, Aged  about 

70.  P.  Fib.  I.- Of  the  small-pox,  after  8  days  illness,  in  his  33d  year 

count  Kilmansegg,  son  of  the  countess  of  Kilmanse^,  who  ca.meoTcr 

from  1  lanuvcr  the  beginning  of  the  last  reign,    D.  P.  Fd».  \. He  auDC 

over  with  his  highness  the  prince  of  Orange,  as  one  of  his  gentlemen. 

D,  J.  Feb.  I. Tho"  Mr  Conundrum  canrte!  accounl^r  tAese  differcsi 

accounts  of  these  two  German  counts,  yet  he  counts  it  eertain^  tAattki 
younger  count  was  the  son  of  the  countess,  who  came  over  yrvm  thi 
county  (j/" Hanover. 

About  the  same  time  we  find  in  the  same  paper  another 
paragraph  worthy  of  notice : — 

Vied^  last  week  at  Acton,  George  VUlcrs,  K'sq ;  formerly  pa|;e  of  tlie 

preference  to  quctn  Anne,  said  to  have  died  worth  30,000!. ^Mr  Rylcy^ 

a  pay-master  scrjcant,  as  he  was  drinking  a  pint  of  beer  at  the  Satoj 

£>,   y. On   friday  Mr   Fevcrel,    master  of  the  bear  and   rumi 

tavern   in   Gerard-street,  who  was  head    cook  to  king    Willjam 

queen  Anne,  reputed  worth  40.000L    P. Mr  Favil.     /?.  P. 

Favel.    D.J. MrFewell,  2i,oool.    D.  A. 

On  March  14,  also  of  1734,  there  is  tliis  : — 

Died  on   tuesday   in   Tavistock -street,    Mr    Mooring,    an   craiiici 
mercer,  that  kept  Long's  warehouse,  said  to  have  died  worth  60, 

D.  y. This  was  $  days  he/ore  he  did  die,  ami  40,000!.  tnore  tfhin  hi 

died  worth  according  to  D.  P.  Mar.  12. 

And  on  the  28th  this  : — 

/?ia/ yesterday  morning  admiral  Mtghelles.   C. Mighells.  P. 

Mlt;hills.  D.  P. A  gentleman  belonging  to  the  carl  of  Grantham 

Cound  dead  in  his  bed.    P. 

And  so  on»  there  being  announcements  in  every  rumbt 
many  of  which  showed  difterences  in  tl»e  daily-paper  notices 
There  are  also  plenty  of  marriage  announcements,  which, 
A  rule,  give  the  amounts  obtained  with  the  ladies,  and  sora< 


CURIOUS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS.  249 

les  the  gentlemen's  fortunes.     The  following  is  from  the 
S.J.  of  February  21,  1734  : — 

Married^  ycslcrday  at  S.  James's  chnrcb  by  (he  right  rev.  Br  Hen, 

gcrlon,    lond   bishop   of  Hereford,   the  hon.   Francis  Gcwlolphin,   of 

Uland-yard,  Esq  ;  to  the  31!  daughter  of  ihc  countcw  of  Tortland,  a 

luliful  lady  of  50,000!.  fortune.    P. Will.  Godolphin,  Esq ;  to  the 

[y  Barbam  Benlinck,  &c.  D.P, At  the  chapel-ruyal,  at  S.  jaoic^'s; 

'yotuigeit  daiightcr,  &c     D.  J,  7?,  A, 

A  few  weeks  later  on  there  is  this  : — 

Jllafrifi/  this  day  the  countess  of  Uelorainc,  governess  to  the  princesses 
Mary  and  Louisa,  to  Will.  Wyndham,  Esq;  son  to  the  late  col.  Wynd- 
'bun.    E.  £. 77iry  were  not  married  Vi//  10  at  night. 

And  on  April  25  this  : — 

Married  %  few  days  since Price,  a  Buckinghamshire  gentleman 

of  near  2000I.  per  ann.  to  miss  Robinson  of  the  Theatre  Koyal  in 

Drury-bne.    Z.  E. On  lue»Iay,  the  lord  Vise  Fuulkland  to  the  lady 

Villcw,   relict  of  t!ic  late  lord  Eaukland,  a  lady  of  great  merit  and 

fortune.    D.  P. Mr  Price's  marriage  is  entirely  false  and  groundless. 

J>,  A.  Ap.  24. 

There  are  in  the  /ourjiai^  as  well  as  in  contemporary 
and  earlier  papers,  occasional  references  to  births  as  well,  but 
none  calling  for  any  comment  at  our  hands.  In  the  GattU- 
mat^s  Magazine  oi  February  1736  lliere  are  two  notices  of 
deaths,  one  commencing  the  list,  wliich  is  curious,  and  the 
other  immediately  following,  which  cannot  fail  to  be  inter- 
esting : — 

SIR  Bro-^tmimoc Sherani^  Bt  in  BurliHgtan  Ganlcns.  He  was  of  a 
human  Disposition,  kind  to  his  Servants  dislik'd  all  extravagant 
Hxpcnce,  but  very  liberal  of  his  Fortune,  as  well  to  his  Relations  and 
Frienils,  as  to  Numbers  of  distressed  Objects  ;  and  iu  particular,  to  St. 
George's  Hospital,  near  Hyde-Park  Ccrner. 

Bernard  LinUtt,  Esq.,  formerly  an  eminent  Bookseller  in  F!ee(-$treH» 
High  Sheriff  for  Sussex,  aged  61. 

Also  the  Earl  of  Derby,  and  several  men  who  arc  noted  to 
have  died  worth  sums  varying  from  ^13,000  10  ^^100,000, 
find  obituary  notices.    These  give  particulars  of  the  lives  of 


I 


250  mSTOR  V  OF  ADVERTISING. 

the  deceased,  and  the  ways  in  which  the  various  propertii 
are  disposed  of,  very  different  from  the  short  annoum 
inents  of  modem  days.  Thus  we  find  that  by  the  death  of 
the  Hon.  Walter  Chetwynd,  the  barony  of  Ratlidown  in  the 
couuty  of  Dublin,  and  viscounty  of  Chetwynd  of  Beerhaven 
in  the  county  of  Cork,  both  in  the  peerage  of  Ireland, 
became  extinct,  but  that  his  brother,  John  Chetwynd,  was 
consoled  by  an  estate  of  ^3000  per  annum  ;  tliat  Mrs  Elira 
Barber  succumbed  to  *'an  illness  she  had  contracted  in 
Newgate  on  a  prosecution  of  her  master,  a  baronet  of 
Leicestershire,  of  which  being  honourably  acquitted,  and  a 
copy  of  her  indictment  granted,  she  had  brought  an  action 
of  j^iooo  damages; "  that  Mr  Fellows  was  an  eminent  sugar- 
baker;  and  thai  Gilbert  Campbell  had  during  his  life  got 
himself  into  trouble  for  misinterpreting  his  duties  as  an 
attorney.  The  marriage  lists  have  also  tlic  admirable 
fashion  of  giving  the  sums  of  money  obtained  with  the 
brides  or  bridegrooms  as  the  case  may  be,  and  in  some 
instances  the  amounts  of  revenue. 

In  the  London  JounujI  oi  February  7,  1730,  there  is  the 
following,  which  shows  that  the  presentation  of  advertise- 
ment-books gratis  is  by  no  means  a  novelty: — 

A/Mtf  New  Masquerade  Warehouse  in  Henrietta  Street,  CoTcnt 
Garden,  are  gtvm  gratis, 

"pRINTED  Speeches,  Jokes,  Jests,  Conundrums  and  smart  Rcpaneci, 
-*'  suited  to  each  llnbit.  by  which  Gcnllcmcnand  La<licsinay  Ixr  quaJi- 
ficd  to  speak  what  is  proper  to  their  respective  Characters.  Also  some 
Dialogues  for  two  or  more  Perfwns,  parlictilarly  between  a  Cardinal  and 
a  Milkmaid  ;  a  Judge  and  a  Chimneysweeper  ;  a  Venetian  Courtcraii 
and  a  Quaker;  with  one  very  remarkable  between  a  Devil,  a  Lawyer 
and  an  Orange  Wench.  At  llie  same  place  is  to  be  spoke  with  Signor 
UosARio,  lately  arrived  from  Venice,  who  teaches  Gentlemen  and 
Ladies  the  behaviour  proper  for  a  Devil,  a  Courtezan,  or  any  other 
Character.  And  vvbcreas  it  is  a  frequent  practice  for  Gentlemen  to 
appear  in  the  Habits  of  Ladies,  and  Ladies  in  the  habits  of  Gentlcmcii« 
Signor  Rosario  teaches  the  Italian  m.inner  of  acting  in  boih  c^pad* 
ties.  The  Quality  of  both  Sexes  may  be  waited  on  and  instructed  at 
Ihcir  Houses, 


Cl/X/OrS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTrSEMENTS,  251 

Also  in  1730  two  Roman  histories  translated  from  the 
French  by  two  Jesuit  priests,  appeared  at  the  same  time — 
one  by  Mr  Ozell,  the  other  by  Mr  Rundy — which  caused 
the  following  advertisement  to  be  inserted  by  the  publishers 
pf  Ozell's  work  : — 

^^  C})is  iDno  IS  ^ubh'sb'l' 

V^fai  will  satisfy  SVC h  as  have  bought  Mr  Ozell's  Translatiim  i*/  iJkt 
'Roman  History,  and  also  uitdeceii-e  sit<h  of  Mr  Buttdys  Friends  as 
0rt  more  Friends  to  Truth  : 
'  Numher  /.  of  the 

HERCULEAN  LABOUR  ;  or  the  AUGEAN  STABLE  cleansed 
of  lis  heaps  of  liUtorical,  philological,  and  Geographical 
Tmropery.  Being  Serious  and  facetious  Remarks  by  Mr  Ozell,  on 
some  thousands  of  capital  and  comica!  Mistakes,  Oversights,  Negli- 
gences, Ignorances,  Omissions,  Miscoiistmctions,  Mis-nomers  and 
other  Defects,  in  the  folio  Tran^ilalioa  of  the  Roman  IIistdky  by  the 
Rev.  MrBuNDY. 

'  A  witty  Foreigner  upon  reading  an  nntrae  Translation  of  Caesar's 
Commentaries,  said  :  *'  It  was  a  wicked  Translation,  for  the  Translator 
liad  not  rendered  unto  C.xsar  the  tilings  which  were  Carsar's." 

With  equal  truth  the*  less  wil,  may  it  be  said  the  Translator  of  the 
Roman  History  has  not  paid  the  Rev.  authors  the  tvthe  of  their 
DUES  ;  which  in  one  of  the  .tame  cloth  is  the  more  unpardonable. 

The  Money  is  to  be  relumed  by  Mr  Oecll,  to  any  Gentleman,  who, 
after  reading  it  shall  come  (or  send  a  letter  to  him  in  Arundel  Street,  in 
the  Strand)  and  declare  upon  Honour,  he  does  not  think  the  Book  worth 
the  Money. 

In  the  Bristol  Gazetle  for  Thursday,  August  28,  17SS, 
simong  advertisements  of  the  ordinary  kind,  some  of  which 
are  noticeable  as  emanating  from  Robert  and  Thomas 
Southey,  we  find  the  following : — 

^^  Stvaf%sta  and  Bristol  DILIGENCE, 

^F  To  carry  THREE  IN.SIDES. 

WILL  set  out  from  the  Mackworth-Arms,  Swansea,  on  Wednesday 
the  l8lh  of  June,  and  continue  every  Sunday,  Wednesday,  and 
Friday  morning  at  four  o'clock  ;  and  will  arrive  early  the  same  evening 
at  ihe  New  Passage,  where  a  good  boat  will  be  woiiing  to  lake  the 
Passengers  over,  and  a  Coach  ready  at  eight  o'clock  the  next  morning 
lo  carry  them  to  Bristol, 

Also  X  LIGHT  COACH  will  set  out  every  Tuesday,  Thursday,  and 


252  lilSTOR  y  OF  AD  VERTJS2XG. 

Saturday  afternoon  at  five  o'dockj  from  the  WuiTE  LlON,  to  meet 
above  Diligence. 

Fare  from  Brl.stol  to  Swansu^a  l1.  los.,  passage  included. 
Short  passengers  the  same  as  the  Mail  Coach. 

N.B. — Parcels   carried  on  moderate  terms,  and   expeditiously  de- 
livered ;  but  no  parcels  will  be  accounted  for  above  5I.  value,  lUilcM 
entered  as  such  and  paid  for  accordingly. 
reiformc<l  by 

J.  LAKE,  Mack  worth- Arms,  Swansea. 
C.  KOTT,  Ship  and  Castle,  Nealb. 
C.  KUADLEY,  Bear,  Cowbridgc 
J.  BRADLEY,  Angel.  CardilT. 
M.  HOGGATiD,  New  Passage. 
R.  CHURCH,  New  Passage. 
\V.  CARR,  UhiieLiou,  UristoL 
N.B.    A  COACH  eN-ery  Monday,  TImrsday,  and  Saturday  morning, 
at  seven  o'clock,  from  the  White  Lion  to  the  New  Passage. 

It  is  to  be  prcsnmed  that  the  line  about  short  passengers 
refers  to  those  who  travel  short  journeys  only,  Ihnugh  a 
friend  of  ours,  himself  a  Welshman,  makes  several  jocular 
allusions  to  the  conditions  that  used  in  the  days  of  tra- 
velling by  road  in  and  about  the  Principality  to  be  imposed 
on  people  of  less  than  the  average  height  As  these  will  l>e 
some  day  published  in  a  volume,  llie  title  of  which  is  already 
decided  upon — "  Cheese  and  Chuckles ;  or,  Leeks  and 
Laughter" — and  which  is  intended  for  distribution  among 
the  bards  at  the  annual  Eisteddfod,  wc  will  not  discount 
the  sensation  then  to  be  derived  from  their  publicatioi 
more  especially  as  wchave  tried  in  vain  and  failed  to  und< 
stand  them. 

For  those  who  take  such  interest  in  the  poet  South* 
thnt  anything  connected  with  his  family  is  regarded  wit 
favour,  we  present  the  following,  from  the  same  number 
the  Bristol  GaziiU^  which  was  kindly  forwarded  by  a  genilf 
man  on  hearing  that  this  work  was  in  progress  : — 

DISSOLUTION  OF  PARTNERSHIP. 
-^pilE    PARTNERSHIP    between    ROBERT    and    TIlOMi 
-*-       SOUTHEY,  Unm-drapces,  &c.,  of  this   city,  was  by  mull 
conficnt  dissolved  on  the  3lst  of  July  l.-ut ;  all  persons  to  whom 


CURIOUS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS,   253 

taiil  partnership  stood  indebted,  are  to  send  their  nccounU  lo  Kobert 
SofTUEV,  Wineslreet,  and  the  persons  indebted  to  ihcm,  are  respect- 
fully requested  to  pay  ihe  same  to  the  said  Robert  Southev,  who 
continue*  the  trade  aj  usual  ROBERT  SOUTHEY. 

THOMAS  SOUTHEY. 
Bristol,  August  Sth,  1788. 


TJ  SOUTHEY,  thnnks  his  friends  in  particular  and  the  public  in 
-'■^*  genera],  for  the  kind  support  he  has  hiiherto  experienced,  and 
begs  leave  to  inform  them,  that  he  is  just  returned  from  London  with 
a  large  assortment  of  goods ;  pariicuhirly  fine  printed  CALLICOES, 
MUSLINS,  and  LACE,  which  he  isdetcmiined tosellon  as  lowtcims 
as  any  per^ion  in  the  trade,  and  solicits  the  earl/  inspection  of  bis 
friends. 

N.B. — Part  of  the  old  Stock  to  be  sold  very  cheap. 

There  is  also  an  advertisement  in  the  paper  fromTliomas 
Souihey,  who  has  taken  up  quarters  in  Close  Street,  solicit- 
ing custom  and  describing  his  wares.  Our  correspon<lcnt, 
who  is  a  gentleman  of  position  at  Neath,  and  whose  verac- 
ity is  undoubted,  says  :  "  My  father  was  a  correspondent 
of  Soulhcy's,  and  in  one  of  his  letters  Souihey  says  he  was 
very  nearly  settling  in  our  Vale  of  Neath,  in  a  country 
house,  the  owner  of  which  was  a  strong  Torj',  but  as 
Southcy  at  that  early  period  of  his  life  was  a  great  Radical, 
he  was  not  allowed  to  rent  the  properly  I  If  this  had  not 
been  so,  he  says,  *  my  children  would  have  been  Camhxxzxi 
instead  of  C«/wbrian.' " 

Among  other  old  customs  now  fast  falling  into  desuetude, 
there  is  in  Cumberland  and  some  other  parts  of  the  north 
of  England  a  practice  known  as  the  Bridewain,  which  con- 
sists of  the  pubhc  celebration  of  weddings.  A  short  time 
after  courtship  is  commenced — as  soon  as  the  date  of  the 
marriage  is  fixed — the  lovers  give  notice  of  their  inten- 
tions, and  on  the  day  named  all  their  friends  for  miles 
around  assemble  at  the  intending  bridegroom's  house,  and 
join  in  various  pastimes.  A  plate  or  bowl  is  generally  fixed 
in  a  convenient  place,  where  each  of  the  company  contri- 


«54 


WSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


butes  in  proportion  to  his  inclination  and  ability,  and 
according  to  the  degree  of  respect  the  couple  are  held  in. 
By  this  custom  a  worthy  pair  have  frequently  been  bene- 
fited with  a  sum  of  from  fifty  to  a  hundred  pounds.  The 
following  advertisement  for  such  a  meeting  is  copied  from 
the  Cumberland  Pacquct^  1786: — 

INVITATION. 
Suspend  for  one  day  your  c:>re(  and  your  Laboun, 
And  come  to  tiiis  wedding,  kind  friends  and  good  Dcighboun. 

NOTICE  is  hereby  given  that  the  marriage  of  ISAAC  PEARS1 
with  FRANCES  ATKINSON  will  be  solemnized  in  due  fo 
in  the  parish  church  of  Lamplugh,  in  Cumberland,  on  Tuesday  ncxt,1 
30ih  of  May  inst. ;  immediately  after  which  the  bride  and  bridcgrc 
with  their  attendants  will  proceed  to  I^ncfoot,  in  the  said  pari 
where  the  nuplial^  will  be  celebrated  by  a  variety  of  rural  ei 
tainmcnts. 

Then  come  one  and  all 
At  Hymen's  soft  call 
From  Whitehaven,  Workington,  Harrington,  Dean, 
Hail,  Ponsonby,  IMaing  and  all  places  between, 
From  Egrcmonl,  Cockermouth,  Barton,  St  Bee's, 
Cint,  Kinnyside,  Caldcr  and  parts  such  as  these  ; 
And  the  country  at  large  may  flock  in  if  ihey  please. 
Such  sports  there  will  be  as  have  Ticldom  been  seen, 
Such  wrestling,  and  fencing  and  dancing  between. 
And  races  for  prizes,  for  fioUclc  and  fun, 
By  horses,  and  asses,  and  dogs  wUl  be  run 
That  you'll  all  go  liomc  happy — as  sure  as  a  gun. 
In  a  word,  such  a  wctlding  can  neVr  fail  please ; 
For  the  sports  of  Olympus  were  trifles  to  these. 

Not*  Bene. — You'll  please  to  observe  that  (he  day 
Of  this  grand  bridal  {H>mp  is  the  thirtieth  of  May, 
\Vhen  'cis  bop'd  that  the  sun,  to  enliven  the  sight, 
Like  the  flambeau  u(  Hymen,  will  deign  to  burn  brigbt. 

These  invitations  were  at  this  period  far  from  rare,  and 

another,  calling  folk  to  a  similar  festival,  appeared  in 

same  paper  in  1789  :— 

BRIDEWAIN. 

There  lei  Hymen  oft  ippear 
la  uflron  rot>c  and  taper  clear, 


CUJilOVS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS.    255 

And  pomp  and  fcaM  aad  rcvtlry. 
Witt)  nuslc  uiid  ^luic  p.igcautry  : 
Such  tighu*  u  youiUrul  poeU  dream, 
On  summer  evo  by  haunted  stream. 

EORGE  HAYTON,  who  married  ANNE,  the  daughler  of  Joseph 
and  Dinah  Coliu,  of  Crosby  Mill,  purposes  having  a  BRIDE* 
VAIN  at  his  house,  at  Crosby  near  Mary]>ort,  on  Tliursday  the  yih  day 
f  May  next,  where  he  will  be  happy  to  see  his  friends  and  well-wishers, 
jr  whose  amusement  there  will  be  a  variety  of  races,  wrestling  matches, 
tcctc.  The  prizes  will  be— a  saddle,  two  bridles,  a  pair  of  ^<i//<£r 
'*fl*wirr  gloves,  which  whoever  wins  is  sure  to  be  married  wiihiu  the 
ireircmonlh  ;  a  girdle  {cemture  de  Venus'S  possessing  quahtics  not  to 
e  described  ;  and  many  other  articles,  Kporls  and  pai^limes  too  numer- 

to  mention,  but  which  can  never  prove  tedious  in  the  exhibition. 

kFrom  fashion's  laws  and  customs  free:, 
We  follow  sweet  variety  ; 
By  turns  we  laugh  and  dance  and  sing ; 
Time's  for  ever  on  the  wing  ; 
And  nymphs  and  swains  of  Cumbria's  plain 
Present  the  golden  age  again. 

A  similar  advertisement  appears  in  the  Pacquei'va  1803, 
nd  contains  some  verses  of  a  kind  superior  to  that  gener* 
Jly  met  in  these  appeals.     It  is  called 

A  rUBLlC  BRIDAL. 
I  ONATHAN  and  GRACE  MUSGUAVE  purpose  having  a  PUB- 
P  Lie  BRIDAL  at  Low  Lorion  Bridge  End,  near  Cockcrmouth, 
n  THURSDAY,  the  i6lhof  June,  1803  ;  when  they  will  begladtosee 
heir  Friends,  and  all  who  may  please  to  favour  them  with  their  Com- 
►any  ; — for  whose  Amusement  there  will  be  various  RACES,  for  Prizes 
•f  difTerenl  kinds;  and  amongst  others,  a  Saddle,  and  Bridle;  and  a 
>i]ver-tipt.  Hunting  Horn,  for  Hounds  to  run  for. — There  will  also  be 
raping,  Wrestling,  Ac  &c 

^1"  Commodiovis  ROOMS  are  likewise  engaged  for  DANCING 
'ARTIES,  in  the  Evening. 

^'ome,  haste  to  the  BRIDAL  !^to  Joys  we  invite  You, 
Which,  hclp'd  by  the  Season,  to  please  You  can't  fail : 

5ut  should  LOVE,MlRTH,.ind  SPRING  strive  in  vain  to  delight  You, 
You've  still  the  tuUJ  Comforts  of  Lorton's  sweet  Vale, 

KvA  where  does  the  Goddess  more  charmingly  revel? 
leic  Zephyr  dispense  a  more  healih-chearing  Gate, 


256 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


Than  where  the  pure  CocktVy  mcandring  the  Level, 
Adorns  the  calm  Prospects  of  Lorton's  swccl  Vale? 

To  the  BRIDAL  then  come  ;— taste  the  Sweets  of  oar  Vallef ; 

Vour  Visil,  good  Chter  and  kind  IV^come  shall  haiL 
Round  the  Standard  oi  0\A  Knglish  Custom,  we'll  nilljr,^ 

And  he  West  in  /^tev,  Friendships  and  Lorton's  sweet  Valk..] 

A  correspondent,  writing  in  Hone's  Table-Book,  di 
August  1827,  says  it  was  in  the  early  part  of  the  centui 
"a  prevalent  custom  to  have  'bidden  weddings*  when  a 
couple  of  respectability  and  of  slender  means  were  on  the 
eve  of  marriage  ;  in  this  case  they  gave  publicity  to  their 
intentions  through  the  medium  of  the  Cumberhnd  Pact^uet, 
a  paper  published  at  Whitehaven,  and  which  about  twenty- 
nine  years  ago  was  the  only  newspaper  printed  in  the 
county.  The  editor,  Mr  John  Ware,  used  to  set  off  the 
invitation  in  a  novel  and  amusing  manner,  which  never 
failed  to  insure  a  large  meeting,  and  frequently  the  con- 
tributions made  on  the  occasion,  by  the  visitors,  were  of  so 
much  importance  to  the  new-married  couple  that  by  care 
and  industry  they  were  enabled  to  make  so  good  *a  fend  as 
niver  to  look  ahint  them/'*  That  this  or  a  similar  custom 
was  practised  commonly  a  generation  ago  in  Wales,  where 
it  is  even  now  occasional,  a  notice  issued  from  Carmarthea 
shows.     It  is  peculiar,  and  runs  thus  : — 

Carmarthen,  April  12,  1S36. 

AS  we  intend  to  enter  Ihe  MATRIMONIAL  STATE  on  Tin 
-**■  DAY,  the  5th  of  May  next,  we  are  encouraged  by  our  Frii 
to  malte  a  BIDDING  on  the  occasion  the  same  Day,  at  the  Sign 
the  Ancel,  situate  in  Lammas-Street  ;  when  and  where  the  fa 
of  your  good  and  agreeable  Company  is  most  humbly  solicited, 
whatever  donation  you  may  be  plcnscd  to  confer  on  us  then,  will 
thankfully  received,  warmly  acknowledged,  and  cheerfully  repaid  wl 
ever  called  for  on  a  similar  occasion, 

Ity  your  most  obedient  hnmble  Scrrant^^ 

DAVID  DANIEL 

(Shoemikkcr,) 
RUTH  EVAN& 


ZJMdBifiSiLM 


CUHIOaS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS.  357 


TkeYour^  Man,  and  IiU  Mother.  (Mary  Daniel.)  and  his  Brother  nnd 
St&ter  (Joshua  and  Anne,)  desire  tlial  all  gifis  of  the  above  nature  due 
to  tiiem,  be  returned  on  ihe  said  Day,  and  will  be  thankiul  far  ail 
fiiTours  granted. 

Also,  ihe  Young  Woman,  and  her  Mother  (Sanih  Evans,)  and  her 
Gnind-falhcr  and  Grand-mother  (John  and  France*  Kvans)  desire  that 
all  Gififtof  the  aliQve  nature  due  I0  them,  he  retunictl  on  the  alxive 
Day,  and  will  be  thankful  with  her  Uncle  and  Aunt  (Benjamin  and 
Uargaret  Evans  Penrhywcoion,)  for  all  additional  favours  granted. 

The  applications  maOe  by  means  of  the  notes  which  fol- 
low the  advertisement  show  that  the  promise  made  by  David 
and  Ruth  to  repay  all  amounts  when  called  upon  is  some- 
thing more  than  a  mere  flourish.  We  should  not  like, 
though,  to  guarantee  that  these  promises  were  always  kept, 
and  have  no  doubt  that  the  concocters  of  tlie  foregoing 
found,  as  so  many  others  did  before  them,  and  not  a  few  have 
done  since,  that  kindness  is  generally  obtained  from  the 
least  expected,  and  often  the  least  valued,  quarter.  This  is 
t  glorious  dispensation  of  providence,  and  few  people  who 
have  experienced  misfortune,  or  have  been  in  want  of  assist- 
ance, but  have  felt  how  compensating  is  the  hidden  power 
which  guides  our  destinies.  Yet  writers  who  constantly 
tail  about  the  insincerity  of  friendship  make  little  or  no 
mention  of  those  truest  friends,  the  friends  who  appear 
linvokcd,  and  do  whatever  has  been  asked  in  vain  of  others 
rho  may  have  promised  freely,  or  who  arc  in  fact  indebted 
lo  those  they  ignore  in  the  moment  of  adversity. 

Burly  old  Grose,  the  friend  of  Burns,  in  his  "Olio" 
gives  a  curious  specimen  of  composition,  which  he  says  was 
the  effort  of  a  mayor  in  one  of  our  University  towns,  though 
which  is  not  stated.     It  tells  us  that — 

often  incurred  by 
we  whose  Names 
are  undcriigned,  have  thought  proper  that  the  Benefit  of  an  Engine, 
bought  by  us,  for  ll;e  belter  Extinguishing  of  which,  by  the  Accidents 
of  Almighty  God,  may  unto  us  happen,  to  make  a  Kate  to  gather  Bo* 
nevolcncc  for  the  better  propagating  such  useful  Instruments. 

Some  clever  student  of  style  may  be  able  to  tell,  by  a 


I 


WliERE.\S,    a  Multiplicity   of  Danger*   arc 
Damage  of  outrageous  Accidents  by  Fire, 


aS8 


If /STORY  OF  ADVERTtsma 


;n!or 


clue  invisible  to  the  uninitiated,  whether  this  is  Oxfoi 
Cambridge.  We  are  not  learned  in  such  matters,  an 
prefer  to  admire,  without  troubling  ourselves  to  identify. 

Poetical  ndvcrtiscnicnts  were  not  at  all  uncommon  a  huii^ 
dred  years  ago  and  less.  The  demand  for  space,  and  the 
steam-engine  rate  at  which  we  live  now,  have,  however, 
destroyed  not  only  the  opportunity  for  them,  but  their  use. 
Towards  the  close  of  the  last  century  there  lived  in  the 
Canongate,  Edinburgh,  one  Ga\an  Wilson,  a  hard-working 
bootmaker,  or,  as  his  sign  described  him,  "Arm,  Leg 
Boot  maker,  but  not  to  his  Royal  Highness  the  Prince 
Wales."  He  was  a  singular  fellow,  and  was  the  inventor 
of  an  art  for  hardening  and  polishing  leather,  so  as  to  be 
workable  into  powder-flasks,  snuff-boxes,  drinking-mugs, 
ink-cases,  and  other  articles  of  a  similar  kind.  His  genius 
did  not  stop  at  this  rough  work,  but  enabled  him  to  form 
a  German  flute  and  a  violin,  both  of  leather,  which,  for 
neatness  of  workmanship  and  melodiousness  of  tone,  were, 
friendly  critics  said,  not  a  bit  inferior  to  any  fiddle  or  flute 
formed  of  wood.  His  greatest  triumphs,  however,  were 
artificial  arms  and  legs,  also  made  of  leather,  which  not 
only  completely  remedied  loss  of  limb,  but  also  closely 
resembled  their  human  prototypes,  being  covered  with  skin, 
nails,  &c.  The  unexampled  success  of  his  endeavours  in 
this  way  was  curiously  illustrated  by  a  person  who,  having 
lost  both  his  hands  by  a  cannon-shot,  was  provided  with  a 
new  and  useful  pair  by  Gavin  Wilson.  This  man  expressed 
his  gratitude  in  a  letter  of  thanks,  written  with  the  artificial 
hands,  which  api>cared  in  the  CaUdottian  Ma-cury  for  1775, 
along  with  an  advertisement  of  the  ingenious  mechanic. 
Wilson  had  also  pretensions  to  wit,  and  was  occasionally  a 
votary  of  what  Foote  once  described  as  the  Tuneful  Ten. 
"  Nine  and  one  are  ten,"  said  Foote  one  day  to  an! 
accountant,  who  was  anxious  the  wit  sliould  hear  his  poetr)', 
and  who  commenced,  *'  Hear  me,  O  Phcebus  and  ye  Tuneful 
Nine  \ "    Having  got  so  far,  he  accused  Foote  of  inattention ; 


i 


CURIOUS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS.   259 

mt  the  latter  said,  "  Nine  and  one  are  ten — go  on/'  which 
ras  too  near  the  shop  to  be  pleasant  The  following 
dvertisement  may  serve  as  a  specimen  of  Wilson's  poetical 
ttempts : — 

G.  Wilson  humbly  as  before 

Resumes  bis  thankfulness  once  more 

For  favours  fonnerly  enjoy'd 

In,  by  the  public,  being  employ'd. 

And  hopes  this  public  intimation 

Will  meet  with  candid  acceptation. 

The  world  knows  welt  he  makes  btfots  neatly 

And,  as  times  go,  be  sells  them  cheaply. 

'Tis  also  known  to  many  a  hundred 

Who  at  his  late  invention  wonder'd, 

That  polish'd  Uather  boxes,  cases, 

So  well  known  now  in  many  places, 

With  pcnvder-Jiasks  and  porUr-mui^s, 

And  jointed  leather  arms  and  le^s. 

Destgn'd  .for  use  as  well  as  show. 

Exempli  gratia  read  below,* 

Were  his  invention  ;  and  no  claim 

Is  just  by  any  other  name. 

With  numbers  of  production  more, 

In  leather  ne'er  performed  before. 

In  these  dead  limes  being  ahnost  idle, 

He  tried  and  made  a  leather  fiddle. 

Of  workmanship  extremely  neat, 

Of  tone  quite  true,  both  soft  and  sweet. 

And  finding  leather  not  a  mute 

He  made  a  leather  German  flute. 

Which  play'd  as  well  and  was  as  good 

As  any  ever  made  of  wood. 

He  for  an  idle  hour's  amusement 

Wrote  this  exotic  advertisement. 

Informing  you  he  does  reside 

In  head  of  Canongate,  south  side, 

Up  tlie  first  wooden-railed  stair, 

You're  sure  to  find  his  Whimship  there. 

In  Ilritain  none  can  fit  you  better 

Tlian  can  your  servant  the  Bootmaker, 

Gavin  Wilson. 

*  The  letter  written  by  the  sailor  with  the  artificial  hands  to  the 
inter  of  the  Caledonian  Mercury, 


mSTOJiY  OF  ADVERTJSIKC, 


Notwithstanding  that  their  day  is  past,  occasional  poetical 
advertisements  are  to  be  found  in  the  |inpers  now.  They 
arc,  as  a  rule,  infmiiely  bad,  and  the  following  is  so  very 
d^JTerent  from  the  general  run  of  them,  that  we  cannot  help 
quoiing  it.  Perhaps  it  was  written  after  taking  a  dose  of 
"  Laniplough,"  which  is  said  on  authority  to  have  so  many 
beneficial  effects,  that  power  over  writers  of  verse  in  gene- 
ral, and  the  writtr  of  the  following  in  particular,  may  easily 
be  included  among  them.  So  all  minor  poets  had  better 
study  this,  which  we  extract  from  a  ** weekly"  a  year  or  so 

ago:— 

A  DRINKING  SONG. 

If  ever  your  spirits  are  damp,  low. 

And  bilious  ;  you  should,  1  opine, 
Juxt  quaff  a  deep  bumper  of  L.impIough — 

Of  Lamplough'a  Pyretic  Suliue. 

The  tide  is  quaint  and  eccentric — 

Is  probably  so  by  design — 
But  they  say  for  disturliances  ventric 

There's  nouglit  like  Pyretic  Saline. 

Don't  bid  me  become  cxcgctic. 

Or  tell  me  Tm  only  a  scamp  low, 
If  I  can  tell  you  more  of  Pyreiic 

Saline  manufactured  by  Lamplougli. 

A  second  good  specimen  was  published  in  a  theatrical 
paper  at  the  time  when  Mr  J.  S.  Clarke,  an  American  come- 
dian, whose  strength  is  in  his  advertisements,  and  who  is 
well  known  this  side  the  Atlantic,  was  playing  in  "  The 
Rivals."     It  is  entitled 

SAVED. 
\\  waa  a  chill  November  eve  and  on  the  busy  town 
A  heavy  cloud  of  yellow  foj  was  sinking  slowly  down  ; 
Upon  the  bridge  of  Waterloo,  a  prey  to  mnd  despair. 
There  stood  a  maa  wilh  hca\7  brow  and  deep  lined  face  of  care. 
One  lingVing  look  around  he  pave,  then  on  the  river  cast 
Tliat  sullen  stare  oFrash  resolve  he  meant  should  he  his  last. 
Far  down  the  old  cpHiedral  rose,  a  shadow  grey  and  dim. 
The  light  of  day  wofld  <3awn  oa  that  bat  ne'er  again  on  him. 


CURIOUS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS.    261 

One  plunge  within  the  murky  stream  would  end  the  bitter  strife. 
"  What  rest's  there  now,"  he  sobbed  aloud,  "  to  bid  me  cling  to  life?" 
Just  then  the  sound  of  stamping  feet  smote  on  his  list'ning  ear, 
A  sandwich-man  upon  his  beat  paused  'neath  the  lamplight  clear. 
One  hurried  glance — he  read  the  board  that  hung  upon  his  back, 
He  leapt  down  from  the  parapet,  and  smote  his  thigh  a  smack. 
"  I  must  see  that,"  he  cried— the  words  that  put  his  woe  to  flight 
Were  "John  S.  Clarke  as  Acres  at  the  Charing  Cross  to-night." 

Another  of  these  eflfusions,  well  worthy  of  insertion  here, 
appeared  quite  recently  in  a  humorous  paper,  and  is  devoted 
to  the  interests  of  Messrs  Cook  &  Son,  the  tourist  agents. 
Whether  or  not  it  was  paid  for  as  an  advertisement,  they 
must  have  found  it  valuable.  Despite  the  sneers  of  several 
small  wits  whom  fortune  has  enabled  to  travel  in  the  old  ex- 
pensive mode,  there  are  very  many  who  are  neither  cads  nor 
snobs,  whatever  the  distinction  may  be,  and  whose  greatest 
sin  is  a  paucity  of  income,  that  have  felt  the  benefit  of  the 
popular  excursionists'  endeavours.  The  verses  are  called 
COOK'S  PERQUISITES. 
In  longitude  six  thousand  ninety-two, 

Latitude  nothing,  the  good  ship,  Salt  Be^f^ 
Caught  in  a  gale,  the  worst  that  ever  blew, 
Was  stranded  on  a  coral  island's  reef. 

Her  back  was  broken,  so  she  went  in  halves. 

The  crew  and  captain  perished,  every  hand  5 
Only  a  pig,  some  chickens,  and  two  calves, 

And  the  one  passenger,  escaped  to  land. 
King  Bungaroo,  with  all  the  royal  suite, 

Was  waiting  to  receive  him  on  the  beach ; 
And  seeing  he  was  plump  and  nice  to  cat, 

Received  him  graciously  with  courteous  speech. 
The  suite,  who  thus  their  coming  banquet  eyed, 

Their  gastric  regions  nibbed  with  grateful  paw, 
And  wondered  if  the  king  would  have  him  fried, 

Or  boiled,  or  roasted, — or  just  cat  him  raw  I 

The  hungry  passenger  their  meaning  caught 

As  hinting  dinner  in  some  manner  dim. 
And  smiling  at  the  notion,  little  thought 

That  they  meant  feasting  on — and  not  wUh — him  I 


a6a  J/rSTOJiY  OF  ADVERTIsrXG^ 

But^  as  yoQ  draw  a  fowl  before  *tis  drvst, 
The  suile  proceeded  first,  of  cvcrylbing 

The  pockets  of  their  victim  to  divest, 

And  laid  their  plunder  down  before  the  king. 

The  monarch  started  at  some  oliject  there — 

Then  seized  the  prisoner's  hand  and  cried  aloud, 

"  Bo.  bingo  wobU  !     Chutigura  raggadare. 
Howinki  croblob?    Boo  I     Owchingadowd  !** 

Whicli  means — "Unhand  this  kindly  {gentleman. 

Observe  those  coupons  !     Note  that  small  green  book  I 
Put  out  the  fire — hang  up  the  frylng-pnn  1 

We  mustn't  eat  him.     He  belongs  to  Cook  1 " 

But  turning  back  to  the  early  limes  on  which  we  started 
in  quest  of  amusing  advertisements,  we  come  upon  a 
fictitious  letter  addressetl  to  Sylvanus  Urban  in  the  Gentle- 
man*s  Ma^asiiu  for  September  1S03,  which  is  signed  Maria 
Elderly,  and  falls  sadly  foul  of  tlie  indecorous  announcements 
then  so  plentiful.  It  runs  thus  :  "Good  Mr  Urban, — You 
must  know,  Sir,  I  am  a  married  woman  and  a  mother  (I 
bless  Heaven  !)  of  several  not  unpromising  daughters.  We 
read  most  of  the  best  English  and  French  authors  together 
as  we  sit  at  our  work  :  that  is  to  say  one  reads  aloud  whilst 
the  rest  draw,  sew,  or  embroider.  The  hours  thus  ps 
more  pleasantly ;  and  our  amusement  I  will  hope  is  pi 
ductive  of  solid  mental  profit.  It  is  a  jiroverbial  go( 
natured  joke  with  young  gentlemen  that  curiosity  is  of  tl 
feminine  gender.  I  will  not  stop  to  dispute  the  matter 
such  acute  grammarians  ;  but  will  rather  honestly  adi 
that  (althougli  1  think  otherwise)  perhaps  *  much  may 
said  on  both  sides.'  Nay,  I  will  own,  Sir,  that  what  wit 
tlie  natural  timidity  of  my  sex,  and  the  fear  of  Bonapartf 
invasion,  I  do  feel  a  little  hankering  or  so,  to  learn  how 
world  of  politics  is  conducted.  I  therefore  have  lat( 
taken  in  a  certain  Aishionable  morning  newspaper,  and 
much  amused  at  first  with  its  contents.  But,  my  dear 
Urban,  I  fancy  I  must  give  up  this  paper ;  and  as  I  fii 


f^TOaS  AND  £CC£NTIi/C  ADVSXTlSEIilENTS,  263 

re  a  married  gentleman,  I  will  at  once  tell  you  why:  I 
often  been  vexed,  Sir,  at  the  sight  of  certain  indecorous 
tisements.  Proof  is  better  than  accusation  at  ail 
I  will  therefore  just  aUude  to  a  few,  wliich,  how- 
I  assure  you,  are  not  the  worst.  I  know  you  cannot 
t  tm  to  transcribe  them.  The  first  instance  I  shall 
;,  is  in  the  paper  of  April  21,  1S03,  where  *a  lady 
30,  wishes  to  be  companion  to  a  single  gentleman  ;* 
s  a  proof  of  the  impropriety  of  this  advertisement,  Mr 

Dover  Street  (to  whom  the  lady  referreJ)  thought  it 
sary  pointedly  to  deny  all  knowledge  of  her  in  another 
Lisement  of  April  28-     In  the  paper  of  May  5,  X  read 

a  widow-lady //fj^///^  in  her  pcrsofi^  &c.,  sohcits  the 
of  ^40   from  a  gentleman.'     The  lady  refers  to  a 

in  Dean  Street,  Soho.  In  that  of  May  26  'a  young 
e  intreats  the  loan  of  pf  130  from  a  nobleman  or 
tman  of  fortune.'  She  refers  to  Curriers'  Row,  Black 
In  tliat  of  June  i,  a  young  lady  (who  refers  to  the 
office,  Blandford  Street,  Poriman  Square)  inserts  a 
unqualified  proposal  indeed.  In  that  of  June  16,  Uie 
isal  is  repeated  in  still  more  impertinent  terms.  The 
tiow  refers  to  Eyre  Street,  Hatton  Garden.  In  that  of 
x8|  appear  two  advertisements  from  females,  of  a  very 
fs  nature^  addressed  to  two  young  men.  Both  arc 
lations;  and  they  are  expressed  too  in  very  intelligible 
J  I  do  assure  you.  I  believe  you  will  agree  with  me 
luch  advertisements  can  do  no  good  and  may  do  much 
I  could  enlarge  my  list  verj'  greatly,  by  pointing  your 
to  paragraphs  of  a  later  date  ;  but  the  subject  is  a  very 
asant  one,  and  I  at  present  forbear.  *  My  poverty, 
lot  my  will  consents*  may  do  in  a  play  ;  but  it  is  a 
xcuse  for  the  editor  of  a  daily  publication  :  and  it  is 
i/tf^  Sir,  when  we  consider  how  many  young  minds  may 
be  empoisoned."  AVe  trust  this  letter  will  be  taken 
idcnce  that  we  have  in  the  preceding  chapter  by  no 
lected  the  worst  specimens  of  the   style   which 


364 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


I 


pervaded  advertisements  at  the  close  of  the  last  century 
and  beginning  of  the  present. 

Tiic  believers  in  vested  interests  may  see  by  an  adver- 
tisement of  the  year  1804,  that  proprietorial  rights  were 
respected  in  those  days  even  among  beggars : — 

'T^O  l>e  riisposcd  of  for  the  benefit  of  the  poor  widow  a  Blind  Mtn's 
-*■  WALK  ill  a  charitable  neighbourhood,  the  comings-in  between 
twenty-five  aJid  twenty-six  shillings  a  week,  with  a  dog  well  drilled, 
antl  a  staff  in  good  repair.  A  handsome  premium  wiU  be  expected. 
Ft>r  further  particulars,  inquire  at  No.  40,  ChiiwcU  StrceL 

The  halcyon  days  of  cadgers  and  crossing-sweepers  are 
over,  and  we  no  longer  hear  of  members  of  cither  profession 
leaving  forlunes.  It  has  often  been  source  of  wonder  to  us 
how  a  right  was  maintained  in  any  particular  crossing  or 
walk.  It  is  presumable,  of  course,  that  no  action  would  lie 
in  the  event  of  one  man  taking  another's  favourite  corner; 
yet,  if  stor>'-lellcrs  are  to  be  depended  upon,  the  "good- 
wills" of  these  places  in  days  gone  by  were  worth  not 
hundreds  alone,  but  thousands  of  pounds.  The  new  police 
and  the  mendicity  societies  have  considerably  disturbed 
such  sinecures,  and  even  those  affectionate  parents  that 
of  late  years  lived  on  the  earnings  of  their  young,  who 
pretended  to  sell  cigar-lights  and  newspapers,  but  who  in 
reality  begged  freely,  have  been  driven  to  earn  their  own 
meals  by  the  officers  of  the  various  school-boards.  So 
passes  away  the  glory  of  free  trade  from  this  over-legislated 
and  cflTete  old  country,  where  no  one  is  allowed  to  do  as  he 
likes  if  it  at  all  interferes  with  die  comfort  of  his  neighbours 
— except,  of  course,  when  he  is  rich  and  the  neighbour  is 
poor.  Passing  on  to  181 1,  we  come  upon  a  quaint  request 
for  a  servant  in  the  Moniin^  Post  of  December  4  : — 

A  COOK-HOUSEMAID,  or  HOUSEMAID-COOK  is  wanted* 
*'*■  for  the  service  of  asingle  gentleman,  where  only  oneoiher,  a  man- 
servant is  kept.  The  age  of  the  woman  wanted  must  not  be  less  than  25, 
nur  more  than  40  years;  and  it  is  requisite  that  she  should  be  equally 
excellent  in  the  two  capacities  of  Cook  and  Hou&emaid.     Her  charac* 


ter  mu-it  be  uncxceptionahlc  for  soliricty,  Iioncity  nnd  cicanlinc---;. 
The  sobriety,  however,  which  consists  in  drinking  deep  without  slayger- 
ing  will  not  do  ;  nor  will  the  honesty  suffice  which  would  make  up 
lor  the  possible  absence  of  pilfering  by  waste.  Neither  will  the 
deanliaess  answer  which  is  content  with  bustling  only  before  the 
employer's  eyes — a  sure  symptom  of  a  slattern.  The  servant  advertised 
tar,  most  be  thoroughly  and  truly  cleanly,  honest  and  sober.  As  it 
is  probable  that  not  a  drab  out  of  place  who  reads  this  advertisement 
Int  will  be  for  imposing  herself,  though,  perhaps,  incapable  of  cooking 
«  Mpntj  and  about  as  nice  as  a  Hottentot,  all  such  are  warned  not  to 
give  themselves  useless  trouble.  On  the  other  hand,  a  steady,  clean 
woman,  really  answering  the  above  description,  will,  by  applying  as 
below,  hear  of  a  place  not  easy  equalled  in  comfort ;  where  the  wages 
are  good  and  constantly  increasing,  and  where  servants  arc  treated  as 
fellow-creatures,  and  with  a  kindness,  which,  to  the  discredit  of  their 
dan,  is  seldom  merited.  Personal  application  to  be  made,  from  one 
to  three  o'clock,  to  Mr  Danvers,  perfumer.  No.  16,  Craven  Street, 
Strand. 

Here  we  have  the  crotchety  old  bachelor  of  the  novels 
to  the  life.  This  advertiser  was  evidently  a  judge  of 
character,  and  doubtless  one  of  the  kindest-hearted  of  men, 
but  irascible  and  touchy,  subject  to  twinges  of  gout,  and 
possessed  of  a  horror  of  east  winds.  A  man  who  would 
scorn  to  be  affected  by  the  most  pitiful  story,  yet  whose 
hand  was  always  in  his  pocket,  and  whose  sympathy  always 
meant  relief  as  well.  Where  are  all  these  good  old  creatures 
gone?  Are  they  all  dead,  and  is  the  race  extinct  ?  Frankly 
wc  must  admit  that  we  never  met  with  any  one  of  them, 
though  we  should  very  much  like  to,  as  we  could  in  our 
own  person  find  plenty  of  opportunity  for  the  disposition 
of  extra  benevolence.  It  is  said  that  the  brothers 
Cheeryble  had  an  actual  existence,  and  perhaps  they  had, 
but  if  so,  they  managed  to  conceal  their  identity  extremely 
successfully.  We  remember  once  meeting  two  brothers  in 
business,  who  in  appearance  and  manner  were  exactly  like 
Nickleb/s  benefactors ;  but  two  more  astute  individuals 
were  not  to  be  found  in  the  three  kingdoms.  And  on  the 
strength  of  this  likeness  they  possessed  a  great  reputation 
for  a  benevolence  which  never  had  even  a  symptom  of 


366 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


real  being.  Apropos  of  those  imaginary  phitanthropisls 
the  Chceryblcs,  we  present  one  of  the  advertisements  which 
were  called  forth  by  their  appearance  in  the  story.  It  is 
from  tlie  Timcsy  and  was  published  February  7,  1844 : — 

'pO  THE  BROTHERS  CHEERYBLE,  or  any  who  have  hearti 
-*■  like  theirs.  A  clergyman,  who  will  glatUy  communicate  his  riamc 
and  adtlre!k%  desires  to  introduce  the  case  of  a  gentlemnn,  equal  at  least 
to  Nicklcby  in  birdi,  worthy,  like  him,  for  rc^hcmcnt  of  character,  cvea 
of  the  best  dcBcenl  ;  Ukc  him,  of  spotless  integrity,  and  powerfully 
beloved  by  friends  who  cannot  help  liim,  but  no  longefi  like  KicUcby, 
sustained  by  the  warm  buoyancy  of  youthful  bkiod.  The  widowed 
father  of  young  children,  he  has  spent  his  all  in  the  stnigg]cs  of  all 
tinsuccessful  but  honourable  buitiness,  and  has  now  for  eighteen  montlii 
been  vainly  seeking  some  stipendiary  employment. — To  all  who  bai; 
ever  known  him  he  can  refer  for  commendation.  Being  well  versed  I 
ar-coiuUs,  lliough  pos&esised  of  educatiuu,  talents,  and  experience,  whi 
would  render  Lini  invaluable  as  a  private  secretary,  he  would  at 
with  gratitude  even  a  clerk's  sloul  and  daily  bread.  Any  communi 
lion  addressed  to  the  Rev.  B.  C,  Post-ofTice,  Cnmbridge,  will  pre 
full  particulars,  ample  references,  and  the  introduction  of  the 
who  is  now  in  town,  and  ignorant  of  this  attempt  to  serve  him. 

Dickens,  knowing  his  power  at  that  time,  must  hai 
laughed  in  his  sleeve  at  the  trick  he  was  playing  the  proft 
sional  swindler  when  he  portrayed  the  brothers;  though,  if 
are  to  believe  what  we  arc  told  in  the  preface  to  a  sub: 
qncnt  edition  of  his  book,  the  noble  army  of  begging-letter 
writers  and  suchlike  impostors  had  ample  revenge,  for  he 
was  pestered  nearly  to  death  with  importunities  to  reveal  the 
real  name  and  address  of  purely  mythical  characters.  In- 
ventors of  appeals  to  the  benevolent,  cither  byway  of  letter 
or  advertisement,  are  a  hard-working  race,  and  must  find  the 
task  of  enlisting  s>*mpathy  much  more  dif^cult  than  it  was 
when  ^fr  Puff  tided  over  a  time  of  misfortune  by  aid  of  the 
charitable  and  credulous.  It  is  possible  even  now,  despite 
the  efforts  of  societies  and  detectives  who  give  ihcmselTCS 
entirely  to  the  work  of  unmasking  counterfeits,  to  fmd  one  or 
two  of  those  heart-stirring  appeals  to  the  benevolent  whicb 
have  maintained  many  an  impostor  in  idleness  for  ycara 


^OCrs  Al^D  ECCEi^TRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS.  267 

Like  Pnffdid  in  his  time,  though  evidently  less 
s  successfully,  these  advertisers  support  themselves 
icir  inventions  by  means  of  the  proceeds  of  addresses 
I  charitable  and  Iiumane,"  or  "  to  those  whom  pro- 
•  has  blessed  with  affluence."  The  account  which 
ves  of  his  liclitious  misfortunes  so  little  exaggerates 

risements  which  appear  occasionally  in  llic  Timts^ 
well  to  the  point,  and  worthy  of  quoting.  •*! 
he  says,  "  never  man  went  through  such  a  series 
hiitles  in  the  same  space  of  time.  I  was  five  times 
.  bankrupt,  and  reduced  from  a  state  of  affluence  by 
of  unavoidable  misfortunes.  Then,  though  a  very 
ious  tradesman,  1  was  twice  burnt  out,  and  lost  ray 
I  both  times.  I  lived  upon  those  fires  a  month.  I 
fter  was  confined  by  a  most  excruciating  disorder, 
it  the  use  of  ray  limbs.  That  told  very  well ;  for  I 
e  case  strongly  attested,  and  went  about  to  collect 
)Scriplions  mysclfl  Afterwards,  I  was  a  close  pri- 
I  tlie  Marshalsea  for  a  debt  benevolently  contracted 
5  a  friend.  I  was  then  reduced  to — oh  no! — then  I 
\  a  widow  with  six  helpless  children.  Well,  at  last, 
ith  bankruptcies,  fires,  gouts,  dropsies,  imprisonments, 
ler  valuable  calamities,  having  got  together  a  pretty 
me  sum,  I  determined  to  quit  a  business  which  had 
gone  rather  against  my  conscience." 
ea\Tng  "The  Critic,"  and  the  ideas  which  the  speci- 
t  given  have  promoted,  we  will  fall  back  upon  an 
ent  of  a  truly  humorous  nature,  which  is  given 
d  05  long  back  as  1S16.  What  householder  who 
ved  his  dwelling  for  the  benefit  of  a  grasping  pro- 
U  not  sympathise  with  tiie  writer  of  this? — 

'ED  IMMF.niATELV,  !o  enable  me  to  leave  the  houw 
lich  I  liave  for  these  Inst  fn-c  years  inhabitcil,  in  the  same 
condition  in  which  I  found  it,  500  LIVE  RATS,  for  which 
lly  jiay  the  niim  of  ^^5  steiling  ;  and  ns  \  cannot  leave  the 
led  thereto  in  the  same  order  in  which  I  got  it,  witliout  at 


268  j//sroA'y  or  advertising. 

least  Five  Millions  of  Docks,  Docfccns  (weeds),  I  do  hereby 
n  further  sum  oX £,^  for  said  number  of  Dockcns.     Appl)r  —  — > 

Uatcd,  31  October,  1S16. 

N.  B.     Tlie  Kats  must  be  full  p-own,  and  no  cripples. 

In  close  companionship  with  the  above  wc  find  anothOt] 
which  for  peculiarity  is  quite  as  noticeable.     The  adi 
tiser  has  evidently  studied  humanity  without  receiving 
benefit  from  his  researches,  unless  the  knowledge  thai 
is  vastly  superior  to  every  one  else  is  a  benefit.     If 
advertisement  were  not  a  swindle,  of  which  it  seems 
suggestive,  it  is  not  unreasonable  to  suppose  that  failu 
attended  upon  it,  for  no  man  who  believed  to  such  , 
extent  in  himself  could  ever  be  brought  to  have  faith 
another  : — 

TT  i»  the  Ecneral  desire  of  princes  and  opulent  men  to  live  fricndle 
■^  — they  gain  obaequiausness,  adulation,  and  dependents,  bat 
friends :  llic  sycophants  that  surround  thcra  disappear  when  the  li 
that  attracted  ihem  is  lost:  beguiled  by  blandishments  deceived 
hypocrisy,  and  lulled  by  professions  ihey  do  not  discover  imposture  1 
adversity  detects  it,  'J'he  evil  ia  unbounded — ihey  never  obtain  a 
cere  opinion,  whether  regarding  pecuniary  embarrassment  or  d( 
dissension — in  any  perplexed  or  unhappy  event  they  receive  no 
but  that  which  benefits  the  sinister  views  of  him  who  gives  it 
advantage  is  forlunc  if  it  transforms  fiicnds  into  parasites,  and 
to  live  in  constant  delusion  ;  or  IvTlalcd  and  secluded,  we  mi 
like  hermits  to  shim  intercourse  with  our  fcllow-beingii,  and  esca,| 
C'.iy?  One  whose  affluence  precludes  speculation,  who  has 
liinisclf  undaunted  in  danger  and  unshaken  in  fidelity,  proflle 
friendUiip  to  him  who  deserves  it,  and  Mfill  know  how  to  appicciai 
—his  reading  has  not  alTurded  mere  abstract  knowledge,  but  has 
rendered  auxiliary  for  a  vast  intercourse  with  the  warld  ;  years  hfti 
fvimiahed  rxperience,  reflection  has  improved  it.  His  advice  and 
lie  hopen  is  ^ot  insignificant,  be  the  titation  of  him  who  requires  the 
ever  so  elevated.  As  tlicre  can  be  no  independence  where  there  is  n( 
cipiahty  of  circumstances,  no  one  of  inferior  condition  can  be  noticed. 

Still  about  the  same  period  we  come  upon  the  advertis* 
ment  of  an  Irish  schoolmaster,  which  for  inflation,  pomposity, 
and  ignorance  is  perhaps  unrivalled.     It  is  only  fair,  whiU 
quoting  this,  to  say  that  Mr  Hendrick  is  not  by  any  means 


CVX/OUS  AS'D  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTJSEMEirrS.   469 


good  specimen  of  the  Irish  teacher,  who  is,  as  a  rule, 
>dest,  conscientious,  and  chokeful  of  learning.  This 
tract  forcibly  reminds  us  of  one  of  Samuel  Lover's  chaxac- 
fs: — 

Mr  Hekdrick's  devoir  to  the  gentry  of  Limerick. 
L70ULD  be  elaied  to  assign  his  atteniion  for  the  insiruction  of 
•      eight  or  ten  Pupils,  to  attend  on  their  houses  ench  second  day, 
tcuh  the  French  language,  Geography  on  the  Principles  of  Astro' 
sy,  traversing  the  Globe  by  sea  and  land  on  the  rudiments  of  a  right 
,le,  with  a  variety  of  pleasing  Problems,  altnchcd  to  Manners,  Cur. 
Duv  &c  of  difTcrenl  Countries,  Trade  and  Commerce;  Phenomenons 
\  Yolcjino«,  Thunder,  Sound,  Lightning.  &c.     Such  as  please  to  con. 
ktie',  may  advance  through  a  Course  of  Natural  Philosophy,  and  those 
toficienl  in  French  can  be  taught  the  above  in  that  Language. 
N.B.    At  intervals  would  in<>tcuct  in  the  Italian  Language. 
Fleaftc  10  ioqutre  al  Mr  Barry,  Newtown-Pcrry. 

J.  Uendrick,  PMUcmath^s, 

In  a  Jersey  newspaper  for  December  1821  there  is  a 
tty  funny  advertisement  for  a  lost  dog — so  funny  indeed 
i  it  that  it  seems  more  than  likely  to  have  been  a  hoax,  or 

hit  at  the  peculiarly  broken  English  identified  with  the 
[banncl  Islands.  Still  it  appears  as  an  advertisement,  and 
\  we  append  it : — 

'OSE. — Derc  ave  bin  von  doge,  dat  vil  replay  to  de  nppel  of 
-^  **  Outre  ;*'  he  is  betwin  de  couleur  of  de  vite  and  de  bruin,  derc 
betif  he  was  delay  by  some  pcrsonne  on  propos,  ns  he  was  vont  by  de 
on  Monday  next  for  to  come  to  de  cba&se,  as  he  kno  vcre  was  de 
Applie  of  de  oner  at  de  Printure. 

As  a  companion,  here  is  the  following  from  the  Handeis' 
d  of  Amsterdam.  It  is  much  more  natural  than  the 
rsey  effusion,  and  is  evidently  an  attempt  to  write  the 
nguage  known  on  the  Continent  and  abroad  generally 
\  American.  It  will  be  recollected  that  one  of  the  last 
•quests  of  the  Emperor  Nicholas  during  the  Crimean  w-ir 
as  that,  in  gratitude  for  the  efl'orts  at  assistance  made  by 
jc  good  people  of  the  United  States,  the  cadets  in  the 
lilitary  schools  should  be  taught  the  American  language. 
his  must  be  near  to  his  idea  of  it : — 


L 


*7o 


WSTORY  OF  AVVERTISIXG. 


MEDAILLE  of  SILVER  at  New- York. 
MEDAILLE  of  COLD  at  Paris,  London  and  Berlin. 

The  very  celebrated  AMERICAN-BALSAM,  notwithstanding 
great  competition,  preserve  the  preference ;  wherefore,  did  is  your  qui 
tion  because  every  body  is  content  with  his  expectation  and  recommeod 
this  Imliuim  indeed. 

The  under  sjfjncd  have  by  experience  of  himself  following  the  worit« 
ingof  this  balsam  and  mny  be  rejoicing  tooHcran  hishonorablei  fdloV' 
citizens  and  compatriots  a  very  excellent  remedy  to  prevent  the  sallyofj 
hair,  to  dissipurte  the  erysipelas  ;  and  than  the  greatest  desire  of 
Consist  to  recover  the  hair  upon  their  bald-spates,  it  is  reading 
day  in  the  newspapers,  but  noue  nnnonce,  as  the  under  signed  has 
right  to  do  it  with  contract  A'O  HAIR  NO  MONNEV. 

The  prevent  imitation  none  than  TMEOl'HILE  is  sole  agent  for 
Netherlands,  St.  Nicholasslrcet  at  Amsterdam.      Ladys  !    rcriiwipl|. 
cutis,  tress  shall  be  dying  very  beautiful  is  every  colours,  of  light 
to  bUck. 

Bony  inspection  of  a  long  wigt  tress,  with  teen  diflerenls  colenr^ 

On  December  23,  1823,  the  following  droll  advertisem^ 
appeared  in  the  Morrting  Jlera/d.     It  was  probably  a  sal 
on  the  manners  and  customs  of  quasi-fashioiiables  of 
day,  though  why  any  one  should  be  so  anxious  to  mark 
disapprobation  of  the  state  of  affairs  as  to  pay  for  the  pt 
lication  of  his  satires  we  really  are  not  prepared  to  say  :- 

Tir  ANTED, for  the  ensuing  London  Campaign,  a  CHAPERON/ 
^  '  will  undertake  the  charge  of  two  young  ladies,  now  making  tl 
cnlnJe  into  fashionable  life  ;  she  must  possess  a  constitution  im|K:r 
to  fatigue  and  heat,  and  be  perfectly  independent  of  sleep;  an /aii\ 
the  mysteries  of  Whist  and  Cassino,  and  always  ready  to  undcrt: 
round  game,  with  a  supper  appetite  of  the  most  moderate  descripii< 
any  personal  charms,  which  might  interfere  by  her  acling  as  a  foili' 
her  charges,  will  be  deemed  inadmissible  ;  and  she  mvist  be  t< 
divested  of  matrimonial  pretensions  on  her  own  account,  liavlng 
cicnt  experience  in  Ihc  hrau  monde  to  decide  with  promptitude  on 
eligibility  of  invitations  with  an  instinctive  discrimination  of  Atmadt| 
men,  and  eldest  sons.  Address  to  Louisa,  Twopenny  Post  Of&ce, 
Great  Marydc-bone-slrecL 

N.13.  No  Widow  from  Bath  or  Cheltenham  will  be  treated  with. 

In  the  Timfs,  at  the  close  of  the  year  1826,  an  advert! 
mcnt  appeared,  which  ran  as  follows : — 


^^ifMBOi^^fll 


CURIOUS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADP'ERTISE.\fENTS.   271 

rO  SCHOOL  ASSISTANTS.— Wanted,  a  respectable  GENTLE- 
MAN  of tood  diameter,  capable  ofTEAClilNG  ihc  CLASSICS 
I  fitf  as  Homer  and  VirBil-     Apply 

There  is  nothing  noticeable  in  this,  the  reader  will  think, 
lor  is  there;  but  the  sequel,  which  is  tokl  in  a  number  of 
be  DOW  leading  journal  a  few  days  afterwards,  will  perhaps 
epay  perusal.  A  day  or  two  after  the  advertisement  had 
ppeared,  the  gentleman  to  whom  application  was  to  be 
»adc  received  a  letter  as  follows:  *'  Sir— With  reference  to 
n  advertisement  which  were  inserted  in  the  7mfs  news- 
aper  a  few  days  since,  respecting  a  school  assistant,  I  beg 
>  state  that  I  should  be  happy  to  fill  that  situation ;  but  as 
lost  of  my  frends  reside  in  l^ondon,  and  not  knowing  how 
vr  Homer  and  Virgil  is  from  town,  I  beg  to  state  that  I 
tould  not  like  to  engage  to  teach  llie  classics  farther  than 
[aininersmith  or  Turnham  Green,  or  at  the  very  utmost 
btaace  farther  than  Brentford. — Wating  your  reply,  I  am, 
ir,  &c.  &c.,  John  Sparks."  The  errors  in  orthography  and 
ptax  have  been  copied  as  in  the  letter,  but  we  fancy  the 
latter  looks  suspiciously  like  a  hoix.  The  editor,  however, 
links  otherwise,  and  after  appending  a  few  remarks,  sa)"^ 

Pis  puts  us  in  mind  of  a  person  who  once  advertised  for 
frofig  (oal  hea^fer*  and  a  poor  man  calling  upon  him 
day  after,  saying,  '  he  had  not  got  such  a  thing  as  a 
}rons  coal  heax'er^  but  he  had  brought  a  strong  coal  saittU, 
lade  of  llie  best  iron  j  and  if  that  would  answer  the  pur- 
ose,  he  should  have  it  a  bargain.* "  About  this  time  the 
allowing  request  for  a  minister  was  published  in  tlie  Monthly 
^rror,  and  doubtless  applications  were  numerous  for  the 
ngagcment : — 

ANTED,  for  a  newly  erected  Chapel,  near  Grosvenor  Square,  a 
genllcman  of  elegant  manners,  and  insinuating  addrcsji,  lo  con- 
Dct  the  theological  department  to  a  rc6ned  audience.  It  is  not  ncces- 
uy  that  he  believe  in  the  Tliirty-ninc  Article* ;  but  It  is  expected  that 
c  should  possess  a  white  hand  and  a  diamond  ring ;  he  will  be 
lipected  to  leave  out  vulgar  ideas,  and  denunciations  against  polile 
Ices  which  he  may  meet  with  io  the  Bible;  and,  npon  no  account,  be 


N- 


271 


mSTORY  OF  ADI'ERTISING, 


■ 


l>uiUy  of  wounding  the  ears  of  hii  auditory  with  the  words  h~n, 

cl n.    One  whu  lUps,  is  near-siglitcdt  and  wliu  has  a  due  regard  i 

amiable  weaknesses,  will  be  prererred. 

N.lt. — If  he  is  of  pleksjng  and  accommodating  mannen,  he  will  hM 
a  chance  of  bein;;  introduced  to  ihe  finsl  compartv,  and  three  card 
every  Sunday  evening.     One  who  knows  a  few  college  jokes,  or 
has  been  Chaplain  to  the  Whip  Club,  will  be  preferred.     He  will  hsi 
no  occasion  to  administer  Baptism,  &c.  &c.  there  being  on  old  gcnlI^" 
man  employed,  who,  on  account  of  extreme  distress,  has  ^rced,  for 
pounds  per  annum,  to  preach  in  the  afternoon,  and  do  all  the 
work. 

Letters  must  be  addressed   to  James  Speculate,  Esq.   Surve 
Oflfice,  New  Square,  Mary-le-Rone. 

Apropos  of  tlie  foregoing,  "  The  Goodfcllow's  Calendar, 
a  handbook  of  humorous  anecdote  and  criticism  for  ne 
every  day  in  the  year — some  stray  leaves  of  which  ha' 
found  their  way  into  our  possession — gives  some  accoun 
of  a  parson  who.  it    says,    would    have   been    eminently 
fitted  for  the  situation.    **Thc  Rev.  R.  C.  Maturin,  Curate 
of  St  Peter's,  Dublin,  and  author  of  one  of  the  most  immoral 
and   trumpery  tragedies,    '  Bertram,'   that  ever    disgraced 
the  stage,  or  gratified  the  low  taste  of  an  acting  manager, 
died  October  3olh    1824.      This  exemplary  pillar  of  the 
Established    Church   was   exceedingly   vain,   both   of 
person  and  accomplishments,  and  as  his  income  would 
allow  him  to  attract  attention  by  the  splendour  of  his  d 
and  manners,  he  seldom  failed  to  do  so  by  their  singularii 
Mr  Maturin  was  tall,  slender,  but  well  proportioned, 
on  the  whole  a  good  figure,  which  he  took  care  to  disp 
in  a  well-made  black  coat  lightly  buttoned,  and  some 
light-coloured    stocking-web   pantaloons,    surmounted, 
winter,   by   a  coat   of    prodigious   dimensions,   graceful 
thrown  on,  so  as  not  to  obscure  the  symmetry  it  afTected 
to  protect.     The  Curate  of  St.  Peter's  sang  and  danced,  a 
prided  himself  on  performing  the  movements  and  evolutioi 
of  the  quadrille,  certainly  equal  to  any  other  divine  of 
Established  Church,  if  not  to  any  private  lay  gentlet 
of  the  three  kingdoms.     It  often  happened,  too,  that 


t^PTOUS  AKD  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS.   273 


aturin,  either  laboured  under  an  atUick  of  gout  or  met 

ilh  some  accident,  which  compelled  the  use  of  a  slipper 

\x  bandage  on  one  foot  or  one  leg ;  and  by  an  unaccount- 

ible  congruiiy  of  mischances  he  was  uniformly  compelled 

^  these  occasions  to  appear  in  the  public  thoroughfares 

[►f    Dublin,  where  the  melancholy  spectacle  of  a  beautiful 

liinb  in  pain  never  failed  to  excite  the  sighs  and  sympathies 

t>f   ail   the  interesting  persons  who  passed,  as   well  as  to 

prompt  their  curiosity  to  make  audible  remarks  or  inquiries 

lespecting  the  possessor,"     We  are  much  afraid  that  the 

ranity  of  Mr  Maturin  was  not  wonderfully  peculiar,  and 

irith    due  allowance  for  those  differences  in  our  styles  of 

iSress  and  living  which  have  been  made  in  fifty  years,  it 

irould  not  be  difiicult  to  find  ministers  of  the  gospel  who 

■rould  prove  strong  rivals  to  the  curate  of  St  Peters. 

:    In   1S35  the  New  Times  presented  the  public  with  the 

priginal  of  that  singular  advertisement  which  has  been  so 

ften  quoted  as  an  Irish  bull,  but  which  would  appear  to  be 

ome-brcd  :  "  Wanted  by  a  Surgeon  residing  at  Guildford, 

wo  apprentices,  who  will  be  treated  as  one  of  the  family." 

c  Hibernian  companion  to  this  would  most  fitly  be  the 

blin  cditor*s  statement,  in  reference  to  a  newly-invented 

undry  machine,  that  by  its  use  every  man  would  probably 

come  his  own   washerwoman.      From  washenvomen  to 

oeral  servants  is  but  a  step,  and  so  from  tlie  Times  of  five- 

d-twenly  years  back  we  extract  a  model  specimen,  sup- 

osed  to  emanate  from  that  rarest  of  rara  avesj  a  pattern 

omestic ; — 


O  YOU  WANT  A  SERVANT?  NccMsity  prompts  the  qoes- 
lion.  The  advertiser  OFFERS  his  SERVICES  to  any  Iti.iy  or 
ntlcman,  company,  or  othens,  in  want  of  a  truly  faithful,  cotifiitential 
icrvant  in  any  capacity  not  menial,  where  a  practical  knuwledgc  of 
buiDan  nature  in  various  parts  of  the  wotld  would  be  available.  Could 
Bnderlake  any  affair  of  small  or  great  importance,  where  talent,  invio- 
ablc  secrecy,  or  good  address  would  be  neccssarj'.  Ha*  moved  in  the 
Test  and  wur^t  sncietics  without  Ijcing  contaminated  by  either  ;  has 
sever  been  a  »cn'nnt,  bc^s  to  recommend  liimM:l/  a»  one  who  knows 

S 

I 


i 


his  place  ;  is  moral,  temperate,  middle-aged  ;  no  objection  to  latf 
part  of  the  world.  Could  advice  any  capitalist  vi^-hing  to  increase  hif 
income  nnd  Imve  the  control  of  his  own  money.  Could  act  as  secretary 
or  va.lcl  to  any  lady  or  gentleman.  Can  give  advice  or  hold  his  ton^e, 
sing,  dnnce,  play,  fence,  box,  preach  a  sermon,  Icll  a  story,  be  gnve 
or  gny,  ridiculous  or  sublime,  or  do  anything  from  the  curling  oft 
peruke  to  the  storming  of  a  citadel — but  never  to  excel  his  master. 
Address . 

Differing  considerably,  and  yet  much  in  the  same  line,  » 
the  following,  which  is  amusing  from  the  amount  of  confi- 
dence the  writer  possesses  in  his  own  powers,  and  the  small 
value  he  sets  upon  the  attainments  of  those  who  possess 
that  most  valuable  qualification  of  all — property.  The 
oflTer  never  to  be  better  than  his  patron  is  a  condescension 
indeed  from  such  a  paragon  : — 

-yO  INDEPF.NDENT  GENTLEMEN.— Wanted  by  a  respect- 
-'■  able,  modest  young  man,  who  can  produce  n  cubic  yaid  of 
testimonials,  a  living  without  a  master— that  is,  he  wishes  to  become  a 
companion  to  some  gentleman,  and  l>c  his  factotum.  He  can  riJc^ 
shoot,  sing,  dnh  (but  never  better  than  his  patron  without  he  is  wanted^ 
keep  accounts,  see  that  ser\'ants  do  their  duty,  do  twenty  other  thingi, 
equally  nece£sar>'  in  litis  life,  and  make  il  his  whole  duty  to  please  aod 
be  pleased.  Any  one  seriously  wishing  siich  a  person,  may  address 
post  paid  to  Z.,  to  be  left  at . 

Advertisements  from  the  other  side — ^from  employers- 
are  also  noticeable  now  and  again,  as  this  will  show  ; — 

BOARD  AND  RESIDENCE  FOR  WORK— An  old  liiewiT 
pentlcman  invites  two  widow  Iadic5,  about  forty,  to  assist  Ir  :i  vi 
doing  without  servants,  except  a  charwoman  once  a  week.  One  1 1  _. 
must  undertake  entrees,  soups,  and  jellies.  Itolh  must  be  strong  aojl 
healthy,  so  that  the  work  may  be  rather  pleasant  than  irksome  ;  two- 
thirds  of  it  being  for  their  own  comfort,  as  no  company  is  ever  kept. 
A  private  sitting-room.  laundry  free.  All  dining  together  at  seven 
o'clock.  References  of  mercantile  exactness  required. — Address  A.  Bu, 
• staling  age  and  full  particulars  of  antecedent  position,  &c. 

This  old  literary  gentleman  was  wise  in  his  generation,  as 
liis  offer,  though  very  plausible,  meant  nothing  less  than 
obtaining  two  servants  without  wages,  and  society  as  well 


CURIOUS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS,   275 


Possibly,  however,  the  fact  of  the  ladies  being  widows  was 
supposed,  upon  the  principle  of  Tony  W'eller,  to  compensate 
for  shortcomings  in  the  way  of  salary.  Other  applications 
for  a  superior  class  of  servants  deserve  attention,  the  follow- 
ing modest  offer  for  a  governess  being  a  case  in  point : — 

WANTED,  in  a  gentleman's  family,  a  young  lady,  as  NURSERY 
GOVERNESS,  to  instruct  two  young  ladies  in  French,  mu.iic, 
snd  singing,  with  the  usual  branches  of  education,  and  to  take  the 
entire  charge  of  their  wardrobe.  She  must  be  of  a  social  dispoMtion 
and  fond  of  children,  and  have  the  manners  of  a  gentlewoman,  as  she 
will  be  treated  as  one  of  t.hc  family.  Salary  twelve  guineas  per  annum. 
Address . 

All  for  the  small  price  of  twelve  guineas  per  annum,  about 
half  what  a  decent  housemaid  expects,  and  with  less  than 
half  the  liberty  of  a  scullion.  Yet  this  advertisement 
appeared  in  the  Ttmest  and  is  but  the  representative  of 
others  of  the  same  kind,  not  one  of  which  is  supposed  to 
betray  meanness  or  poverty  of  spirit  on  the  part  of  its 
originator.  For  twelve  guineas  a  year,  the  poverty-stricken 
orphan  or  daughter  of  some  once  rich  speculator  is  to 
teach  French,  music,  singing,  writing,  arithmetic,  geography, 
history,  and  other  of  the  **  usual  branches  of  education,"  to 
two  young  ladies,  who  it  is  only  fair  to  expect  would  be 
much  more  like  the  brassfounder's  daughter  who  objected 
to  Ruth  Pinch  than  similar  to  the  charge  of  Becky  Sharp 
when  she  occupied  a  governess's  position.  In  addition  to 
the  drudgery  of  teaching,  there  is  the  charge  of  the  young 
ladies'  wardrobe,  which  means  an  occupation  of  itself;  and 
then  comes — oh,  worst  of  all ! — the  social  disposition,  by 
which  is  undoubtedly  meant  a  capacity  for  doing  whatever 
any  other  member  of  tlie  family  may  object  to  do — for 
being  the  drudge  of  the  drawing-room  when  the  little  tyrants 
of  tlie  nursery  are  abed  and  aslefcp.  By  the  manners  of  a 
gentlewoman  is  understood  a  capacity  for  receiving  studied 
insult  without  resentment,  and  by  treatment  as  one  of  the 

imily  such  care  and  comfort  as  would  cause  the  cook  to. 


276 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


take  her  instant  departure.  And  all  this  for  twelve  guineas 
per  annum  !  This  may  be  called  an  overdra^\'n  picture,  but 
that  is  what  is  said  of  most  self-evident  facts.  And  wlut 
father  worthy  of  the  name  would  die  easily  if  he  thought 
that  his  tenderly-nurtured  daughters  were  likely  to  be  grate- 
ful for  the  protection  and  the  salary  offered  in  the  foregoing 
specimen  advertisement  ?  Yet  many  a  young  girl  has  sml- 
denly  found  herself  divested  of  every  luxury,  and  subject  to 
the  lender  mercies  of  those  who  regard  a  nursery  governess 
as  "  one  of  the  family/'  There  is  an  old  story  in  reference 
lo  the  selection  of  governesses  which  is  worth  repeating 
here.  A  lady  wrote  to  her  son  requesting  him  to  find  a 
teacher  for  his  sisters,  and  enumerating  a  long  list  of  quali- 
fications, somewhat  similar  to  those  generally  expected  in  a 
pretentious  family.  The  son  seems  to  have  been  wiser 
than  his  mother,  for  he  replied  stating  that  he  had  studied 
the  requirements,  and  that  when  he  found  a  young  lady 
possessed  of  them  all,  he  should  endeavour  to  engage  her, 
not  as  a  governess  for  his  sisters,  but  as  a  wife  for  himself. 
Marriage  alters  women,  however,  as  the  subjoined  notice 
from  an  Irish  paper  proves  to  the  most  sceptical  : — 

■nUN  AWAV  FROM  PATRICK  M'DALLAGIT.-AVhertas  my 
''■^  wife  Mrs  Briilgct  M'Dnllagh,  is  again  walked  away  with  herwlC 
Ami  left  me  with  her  four  small  children,  and  her  poor  old  bhndmullier, 
and  nobofly  else  to  look  after  house  and  home,  and,  1  hear,  has  takw 
up  with  Tim  Ciuigan,  the  lame  tiddler— the  same  that  was  put  in  the 
stocks  last  Easter  for  stealing  Barday  Doody's  gamecock. — This  ig  to 
give  notice,  that  I  will  not  pay  for  bite  or  sup  on  her  or  his  account  t* 
man  or  mortal,  and  that  she  had  better  never  sliow  the  mark  of  her  tea 
toes  near  my  home  again. 

Patrick  M'Dallagh. 
N.B.  Tim  had  belter  keep  out  of  my  sight. 

Mrs  Bridget  seems  to  have  been  in  the  habit  of  straying 
from  the  path  of  virtue  and  her  husband's  home,  which,  if 
we  are  to  believe  Irish  poets  and  orators,  must  have  been 
exceptional   behaviour  in    the   land  of  **  virtue  and 

in."      As    if    to   provide   against   similar   emergency,   a 


CURIOUS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS.  277 

Farisian  puts  forth  an  advertisement,  tho  translation  of 
which  runs  thus  :— 

A  gentleman  in  his  twenty-sixth  year,  tired  of  the  dissipation  of  the 
great  world,  is  forming  a  comfortable  establiiihment  in  one  of  the  least 
frequented  quarters  of  the  city.  His  domestics  are  a  coachman,  cook, 
three  footmen  and  a  chambermaid.  He  is  in  search  of  a  young  girl  of 
good  family  to  improve  this  honourable  situation  :  she  must  be  well 
educated,  accomplished,  and  of  an  agreeable  figure,  :fnd  will  be  enter- 
tained in  the  quality  of  detnoisdle  de  compagttU.  She  shall  receive  the 
utmost  attention  from  the  household,  and  be  as  well  served  in  every 
respect  as,  or  even  better  than,  if  she  were  its  mistress. 

As  just  now  there  is  constant  change  of  opinion  as  to 
what  fonfts  the  best  pavement  for  the  streets  with  the  great- 
est traflEic,  as  the  stones  which  seemed  to  be  agreed  on 
for  ever  are  every  day  becoming  more  and  more  disliked, 
and  as  the  main  difference  now  is  which  is  likely  to  prove 
the  more  profitable  change,  asphalt  or  wood,  the  following, 
from  the  Times  of  1851,  may  not  be  uninteresting  : — 

"IITOOD  PAVEMENT.— All  poor  and  distressed  cabriolet  pro- 
'  ■  prietors  and  others,  wheresoever  dispersed,  are  particularly  re- 
quested to  FORWARD  to  us  immediately  PROVED  ACCOUNTS 
in  writing  of  all  ACCIDENTS  to  and  DEATHS  of  HORSES,  and 
Personal  and  other  Ca.sualtics,  in  order  that  the  several  pari^ihcs  may 
respectfully,  in  the  first  place  be  extra-judicially  called  on  to  repay  all 
damages  (at  our  offices),  within  one  calendar  month  of  our  respective 
applications,  or  otherwise  have  proceedings  taken  against  them  respec- 
tively in  the  County  Courts,  or  under  superior  jurisdictions,  and  Ix;  so 
judicially  and  s{>ccdily  made  to  pay  on  account  of  entering  into  cx-parte 
contracts  rendering  life  and  limb  and  travelling  generally  unsafe  and 
dangerous  in  the  cxlrenic,  and  so  continuing  the  bad  state  of  the  wood 
pavement ;  for  no  contracts  can  be  lawful  and  right  unless  impliedly 
perused  and  approved  of  on  behalf  of  the  public  generally. 

Cole  and  Scott,  Solicitors,  12  Funiival's  Inn  and  Notting  IIIU. 

If  the  "  Tendon  stones  "  become  things  of  the  past,  they 
and  their  advocates  will  be  revenged  by  the  undoubted 
fact  that  whatever  follows  them  will,  after  the  novelty  has 
worn  off,  be  just  as  much  abused  as  its  predecessor,  and 
most  likely  changed  much  more  speedily.      Deserving  of 


278 


///S7V/?y  OF  ADVERTiSh\G, 


attention,  too,  though  on  a  totally  different  matter,  is  thej 
following.  It  seems  hard  to  believe  that  a  London  irad< 
man  could  believe  he  was  likely  to  get  his  note  bacV  b] 
informing  a  man  what  he  must  have  already  known;  but 
such  is  the  case.  This  must  be  wliat  is  known  as  "throw*] 
ing  good  money  after  bad  :" — 

CORAL  NECKLACE.— The  gcnCcman   who  purchased  a  coral] 
Dccklace   in   BikhupsttAte-strect,    on    Monday    last    received 
change  for  ^  £%o  note  %  FIVE-POUND  NOTE  too  much.     He 
requested  to  RETURN  it. 

Vulgar  people  would  say  that  the  buyer  of  the  coral  neck- 
lace changed  his  name  to  Walker  after  this.  But  changes 
of  name  are  not  legal  unless  duly  advertised.  Speaking 
of  advertising  changes  of  name,  a  title  by  which  those  lodg' 
ing-house  pests,  bugs,  are  now  often  known,  that  of  Norfolk 
Howards,  is  derived  from  an  advertisement  in  which  onftj 
Ephraim  Bug  avowed  his  intention  of  being  for  the  futurej 
known  as  Norfolk  Howard.  We  have  never  seen 
announcement,  but  have  noticed  many  others,  theappend< 
being  a  specimen,  though  of  a  much  less  sensational  kirn 
than  that  we  have  just  referred  to  : — 

■VTOTICE.— I,  the  imderMgned  THOMAS  HUGHES  FORI 
•^^  DAVIES,  of  Abcrccry,  in  the  county  of  Cardigan,  Esq., 
hereby  Give  Notice,  that  I  fehall,  on  and  after  the  1st  day  of  0< 
her,  1873,  ASSUME  the  names  THOMAS  HUGHES  FORDl 
HUGHES,  instead  of  the  names  of  Thomas  Huglies  Forde  Davii 
which  liut- mentioned  names  I  have  hitlicrio  been  known  nu J  dc&ci  1  bc.J, 
And  I  do  hereby  request  and  direct  all  persons  whomsoever  to  address 
and  describe  me  as  Thomas  Hughes  Forde  Hughes,  and  not  otherwise. 
And  I  further  Give  Notice,  that  I  have  executed  the  necessary  Dcol 
Poll  in  that  behalf,  and  cause  the  same  to  be  enrolled  in  her  Majesty's 
High  Court  of  Chancery. — Dated  this  29th  day  of  September.  1873, 
THOMAS  HUGHES  FORDE  DAVXES. 

There  is  a  good  deal  in  a  name  in  llie  present  day,  and 
there  are  some  names  which  for  obvious  reasons  do  not 
smell  as  sweet  as  roses,  and  therefore  require  changing. 
This  observation  does  not,  of  course,  refer  to  the  change 


CUJilOUS  AND  ECCENTRK  ADVERTISEMENTS.  279 

from  Davies  to  Hughes,  of  which  we  know  absolutely 
j  nothing,  except  iliat  it  appeared  in  the  S/am/iud  oi  October 
1  1873.     As  there  seems  little  to  choose  between   the  two 

names,  it  is  fair  to  assume  that  family  reasons  or  property 
I  qualifications  led  to  the  alteration.  In  the  interest  of  those 
I  goo<l  people  who  sincerely  believe  in  appearances,  we 
I  select  our  next  example  from  the  columns  of  the  Times, 
\  Those,  also,  who  are  in  the  habit  of  asking  what  good  there 

is  in  a  University  education  will  do  well  to  ponder  over 

these  lines: — 
ARTICLED  ASSISTANT.— If  the  GENTLEMAN  who  called  at 

^^-     Messrs and 29,  Poultry,  <jn  Thursday  the  30tl)  I'cbru- 

^B^io  answer  to  an  advcrliscmcnt  in  that  day's  7uMes  for  ''An  .\rticled 
VStistant  "  will  CALL  again  at  the  office  to  which  he  was  referred, 

and  where  he  slated  that  he  was  a  Cambridge  man  ^c,  no  doubt 

Btisfactory  arrangements  can  be  made,  as  appearance  is   ihe  chief 

object 

Appearance  is  indeed  the  chief  object  of  attention  at  the 
present  day,  and  its  influence  goes  much  farther  than 
people  imagine,  even  at  the  very  time  they  are  subscribing 
to  it  Not  alone  does  it  affect  the  positions  of  the  drapers* 
young  man,  the  shop-walker,  and  the  modLQxn  jeune  prcmitr, 
'the  latter  of  whom  may  be  an  idiot  so  long  as  he  is  young, 
tall,  slim,  and  good-looking,  but  it  materially  influences  a 
higher  class  of  society.  Day  after  day  we  see  men  credited, 
by  means  of  lying  heads  and  faces,  with  the  qualifications 
H^  abilities  they  do  not  possess  ;  and,  on  the  other  hand, 
^re  as  frequently  find  the  mildest  and  most  benevolent  of 
gentlemen  regarded  as  desperate  characters  or  hard-fisted 
old  curmudgeons.  No  one  will  nowadays  believe  that  a 
man  who  does  not  look  very  clever  or  very  foolish  can  do 
anything  in  literature  or  the  arts  above  the  common  run ; 
and  the  most  frequent  exclamation  to  be  heard  after  a  real 
celebrity  has  been  seen  is  one  of  disappointment,  so  little 
will  he  bear  comparison  with  the  ideal.  Appearances  were 
never  more  dcccptivCj  and  never  more  believed  in,  than 
they  are  now. 


b 


aSo  WSTOR  Y  OP  AD  VER  TISIXG, 

Stones  of  advertising  tombstones,  some  true,  some  apo- 
cryphal, are  plentiful,  and  the  best  of  those  in  which 
reliance  can  be  placed  is  that  about  the  Parisian  grocer. 
It  is  well  known  that  at  the  Pere  la  Chaise  Cemetery',  near 
Paris,  there  stands,  or  stood,  in  a  conspicuous  position,  a 
splendid  monument  to  Pierre  Cabochard,  grocer,  with  a 
pathetic  inscription,  which  closes  thus  : — 

His  inconsolable  widow 

dctlicales  tliis  monument  to  his  memory 

and  continues  the  same  business  at  the 

old  standi  187,  Rue  Mouffetard. 

A  gentleman  who  had  noticed  the  inscription  was  led  by 
curiosity  to  call   at   the   address   indicated.     Having  ex- 
pressed his  desire  to  see  the  widow  Cabochard,  he  was 
immediately  ushered  into  the  presence  of  a   fashionably- 
dressed  and  fuIl-bcarded  man,  who  asked  him  what  was 
the  object  of  his  visit     "  I  come  to  see  the  widow  Cabo- 
chard."    "  Well,  sir,  here  she  is."    '*  1  beg  your  pardon,  but 
I  wish  to  see  the  lady  in  person."     *'Sir,  I  am  the  widow 
Cabochard.*'     "  I  don't  exactly  understand  you.     I  allude 
to  the  relict  of  the  late  Pierre  Cabochard,  whose  monumcDt 
I  saw  yesterday  at  the  Pbre  la  Chaise."     *'  I  see,  I  see" 
was  ihe  smiling  rejoinder.     "Allow  me  to  inform  you  thai 
Pierre  Cabochard  is  a  myth,  and  therefore  never  had  1 
wife.     The  tomb   you  admired  cost   me   a   good   deal  of 
money,  and,  although  no  one  is  buried  there,  it  proves  a 
first-rate  advertisement,  and  I  have  had  no  cause  to  rci^rrt 
the  expense.      Now,  sir,  what  can  I  sell  you  in  the  wiy  of 
groceries?"      The  art  of  mingling  mourning  and  mone 
making  was  still  better  illustrated  in  Uie  following  notice 
a  death  in  a  Spanish  paper : — 

This  morning  our  Saviour  summoned  away  the  jeweller,  Sieb; 
lllmaga,  from  his  shop  to  anullicr  and  a  better  world,  'llic  under- 
signed, his  M'idovv,  will  weep  upon  his  tomb,  as  will  also  his  two 
daughters,  Hilda  and  Emma;  the  (onner  of  whom  is  married,  and 
the  latter  is  open  to  an  offer.  The  funeral  will  take  place  to-morrow, 
— lli«  disconsolate  widow,  Vcroniquc  Illma^      P.S.  This  bereave- 


nous  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTiSEMENTS.  i8( 

will  not  intcmipt  our  employment  which  will  be  carried  on  as 
,,  only  our  place  of  husincss  will  l»c  removc<l  from  No.  3,  Tcssi  dc 
taricn  to  No,  4,  Rue  de  Missionairc,  aa  our  grasping  landloal 
used  our  rent, 

vertiseraenu  which  now  and  again  appear  in  the 
■  from  people  who  seek  employment  or  money  are 
Hcurious  and  eccentric,  and  in  none  of  them  do  the 
pi  suffer  at  all  from  bashfulness  or  modest  ideas  of 
rown  qualifications.  In  this,  which  is  an  appeal  for  a 
ition,  the  constructor  describes  himself  as 

HiARACTER. — The  noblemen  and  gentlemen  of  England  ore 
respectfully  informed  that  the  advertiser  is  a  self-taught  man — a 
runs."  He  has  travelled  (chiefly  on  foot)  through  the  United 
[dom  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  in  Holland,  Germany,  Swilzcr- 
,  Belgium,  France,  and  Italy.  He  has  conducted  a  popular  ptri- 
ll,  written  a  work  of  fiction  in  three  vols.,  published  a  ^yittcm  of 
logy,  composed  a  drama,  .studied  Hamlet,  been  a  political  lecturer, 
«acber,  a  village  schoolmasier,  a  pawnbroker,  a  gcneial  shop- 
er;  lias  been  acquainted  with  more  than  one  founder  of  a  sect, 
is  now  (he  thanks  rrovidence)  in  good  health,  spitits,  and  cliar* 
\  uul  of  debt,  and  living  in  charily  with  all  mankind.  During  the 
tedcr  of  his  life  he  thinks  he  would  feci  quite  at  home  as  sccrc< 
Hmanuensix,  or  companion  to  any  nubleiuau  or  gentleman  who 
agagc  a  once  erratic  but  now  sedate  being,  whose  chief  delight 
ists  in  seeing  and  making  those  around  him  cheerful  and  happy. 

Fi  A.  Z.|  at  Mr. 's, Street,  Regent's  Park. 
a  rule,  when  people  break  out  in  this  style  they  are 
;h  more  in  want  of  the  money  than  the  work,  although 
r  cloak  their  actual  desires  under  the  guise  of  applica- 
s  for  situations  or  employment.     There  are  not  a  few, 

t«r,  who  come  boldly  to  the  point,  as  the  following, 
■om  the  Times,  shows : — 
AN  OF  RANK»  holding  a  distinguished  public  office,  moving 
in  the  highest  society,  and  with  brilliant  prospects— has  been 
cnly  called  upon  to  pay  some  thousands  of  pouiuU,  owing  to  the 
lit  of  a  friend  for  whom  he  had  become  ydaranicc.    As  Ins  present 
are  unable  to  meet  this  demand,  and  he  can  offer  no  adequate 
for  a  loan,  ihc  consequence  must  be  ruin  to  himself  and  his 


2S3 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


family,  unless  some  individual  of  wealth  und  muniAKQce  will 

forward  to  avcil  this  caUmiiy,  by  applying  ^^4000  to  his  rescue.  Fa 
this  he  fnmkly  avows  llial  he  can,  iu  prc&cnt  drcum<i lances,  offer 
other  return  than  hb  gratitude.  A  pergonal  interview,  however  pair 
will  be  readily  granted,  in  the  confidence  lliJtt  the  generosity  of 
benefactor  will  be  the  best  guarantee  for  liis  delicate  observance 
secrecy,  lie  hopes  his  distressing  condition  will  protect  him  from 
prying  of  heartless  curio&ity,  and  to  prevent  the  approadies  of  mone 
holders,  he  begs  to  repeat  that  he  con  give  no  security.  Addiess 
"Anxious/*  General  Post  Office,  London. 

For  the  benefit  of  those  who  are  curious  about  men 
rank,  ami  in  the  interests  of  those  who  may  like  to  spc 
lute  as  to  who  this  holder  of  a  distinguished  public  of 
may  have  been,  we  will  state  that  the  advertisement 
peared  just  thirty  years  ago.  There  were  then,  and  ha^ 
been  since,  many  men  in  office  who  wanted  four  thousand 
pounds ;  in  fact  it  would  be  a  hard  matter  to  find  a  man 
anywhere  to  whom  that  amount — or,  for  the  matter  of  tbit 
a  good  bit  less — would  not  be  agreeable.  That  these 
vertiseraents  were  not  altogether  fruitless,  this,  from 
Times  of  February  1851,  would  seem  to  show : — 

TKURO. — The  generous  friend  who   transmitted  from  this  ^_ 
under  cover  to  the  Secretary,  G.P.O.  an  ENVELOPE  contoiui 
a  SUM  of  MONEY  is  gratefully  informed  that  the  individual  for  wl 
it  wot  intended  was  reltevcd  by  it  to  an  extent  of  wliich  he  can  form 
conception,  and  is  earnestly  entreated  COMMUNICATIC,  if  not 
name,  at  least  an  address  to  which  a  letter  may  be  sent.     W.  H. 

Men  reduced  in   circumstances  seem  to  have  less 
less  chance  as  the  world  gels  older.     There  would  not 
much  good  got  out  of  an  advertisement  for  money  noi 
days,  whatever  the  original  position  of  advertiser,  unV 
he  could  ])roraise  something  in  return.     His  promise  migl 
be   quite   impossible   of  pertormance,   but   still    it    woul 
be  something;   and  if  we  are   to  judge  by  most  of  t1 
swindling  advertisements  which  have  succeeded  in  takil 
in  thousands  of  people,  the  more  improbable  the  under-" 
taking  the  more  probable  the  success.      Here  is  another 


man  of  hi^h  rank,  of  later  (.late,  who  only  asks  for  ciupioy- 
ment.  A  good  pinch  of  salt  must,  we  think,  be  taken  with 
the  concluding  sentence  of  the  application  : — 

TT  WOULD  BE  A  NOBLE  ACT  OF  HUMANITY  if  any  gencr- 
:"  ou$  and  kind-hearted  individual  would  procure  or  grant  EMPLOY- 
9CENT  to  a  suflering  individual,  in  whose  behalf  this  appeal  is  made. 
He  is  of  high  rank,  education,  and  manners,  and  in  every  point  of 
Ticw  fit  to  fill  any  situation.  He  is  without  influential  friends,  and 
lioin  complicated  frauds  and  misfortunes,  is  unable  to  continue  the 
^noui^on  of  eight  lovely  children.  He  seeks  nothing  for  himself, 
•SOepi  to  be  so  placed,  giving  to  the  hands  of  his  kind  benefactor  all 
he  receives  for  his  children's  present  and  future  support.  This  will 
flftve  him  from  a  broken  heart.  Any  situation  that  will  enable  him  to 
this  object  will  be  received  with  heartfelt  gratitude,  and  filled 
hononr,  assiduity,  and  fidelity.  Most  respectable  reference,  Sec. 
^3.  No  pecuniary  assistance  can  be  received.     Address . 

A  man  of  "  high  rank,  education,  and  manners,"  without 
influential  friends,  is  certainly  an  anomaly  in  this  country; 
"•nd  the  "  eight  lovely  children"  forcibly  remind  us  of  the 
luge  families  which  begging-letter  impostors  and  cadgers 
Scneraliy  have  constantly  at  home,  hungering  not  so  much 
SRar  education  as  for  bread  and  meat.  The  mention  of  high 
l>irth  reminds  us  of  the  many  advertisements  which  have  in 
the  course  of  years  appeared  from  people  who,  not  satisfied 
"With  being  rich,  seek  to  be  fashionable,  and  who  offer  free 
quarters  and  other  advantages  to  any  one  possessed  of  tlie 
oniric  to  Society,  and  yet  not  over-gifted  witl\  the  more 
solid  blessings  of  this  world.  Of  course  these  generally 
appear  in  the  most  fashionable  papers,  and  the  specimen 
"which  follows  is  taken  from  the  Mornittg  Post  of  half-a- 
dozen  years  ago.  With  the  exception  that  it  mentions 
foreign  towns,  it  is  almost  identical  with  others  which  have 
appeared  in  reference  to  our  own  most  exclusive  circles  : — 

SEASONS  at  SPA  and  BRUSSELS.— A  Lady  and  Gentleman, 
well  connected,  offer  to  RECEIVE  as  their  OUEST,  free  of  all 
expense,  a  lady  or  a  gentleman  of  family,  who,  in  sole  return  for  the 
freedom  of  home,  a)uld  give  the  entree  into  Belgian  society.  Spa  in 
the  summer,  Brussels  in  the  winter.    A  small  establishment    A  good 


SS4 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISISG. 


cook.     The   highest    refcreuccs. — Address  P.   R.j    Postc    RcsUnlx^ 
Brus&eU. 

Such  notices  as  this  go  far  to  prove  the  truth  of  the 
saying  that  there  arc  blessings  beyond  price,  that  is,  of. 
course,  always  supposing  the  advertisements  were  iinsuca 
ful  We  shall  never  in  future  meet  any  loud  vulgar  per 
in  Society — provided  we  are  ever  admitted  within  the  sa< 
portal — without  suspecting  him  of  having  crawled  in 
means  of  bribery.  Yet  our  suspicions  may  alight  upon 
very  leaders  ^ii  ion;  for,  so  far,  the  most  vulgar  men  wci 
met— among  gentlemen — were  a  horse-racing  earl  andi 
coach-driving  viscount,  and  they  could  have  been  bacJ 
against  any  four  men  in  that  army,  the  peculiarities  of  whic 
while  in  the  Low  Countries,  will  be  found  recorded 
"Tristram  Shandy."  Among  other  advertisements  in 
columns  of  the  leading  journal,  worthy  of  notice  in 
chapter,  arc  those  singular  effusions  wliich  appear  at  inl 
vals,  especially  during  any  period  of  political  effervescei 
and  which  consist  of  mad  schemes,  the  offspring  of 
thusiastic  patriots  and  headlong  regenerators  of  the  naut 
The  following  is  a  fair  specunen  of  these  : — 

TO  THE  MINISTERS  OF  STATE,  NOBILITY.  AND  O 
M UNITY  AT  LARGE.— A  Remedy  for  Uic  distresses  of 
lantl.    Every  considerate  person  iidmits  ihe  present  cnndilion  of 
to  be  perfectly  anomalous.     A  remedy  has  at  length  been 
— a  rcracdy  which  would  effectunlly  arrest  the  projjress  of  pau] 
confer  incalculable  benefits  upon  the  industrial  community,  and 
joy  and  gladness  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land, 
luigland  (without  cxai;j;eration)  the  en\7  of  surrounding  nalioi 
the  admiration  of  the  world.     The  plan  possesses  the  peculiar 
being  practicable,  and  easy  of  application,  without  in  the 
degree  infringing  the  rights  of  proi>crty  as  by  Jaw  cstablist 
any  way  disturbing  the  present  relations  of  society.     The 
will  communicate  his  discovery  either  to  the  ministers  of  state,  noI 
or  those  who  may  take  an  interest  in  the  wcUbeing  of  society,  on 
dition  of  his  receiving  (if  his  plans  are  approved,  and  made  avoilj 
for  Oie  purposes  contemplated)  ^^100,000.     "If  the  nation  be 
it  j<i  not  to  be  saved  by  the  ordiaory  operations  of  statesmanship.' 
Ashley.     Address . 


*/Ol/S  AKD  RCCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS.  285 


this  chapter,  the  mysterious  "  i^ersonal "  advertise- 
ts  which  years  ago  were  so  frequent  and  so  extra- 
nary — but  which  now  are  rarely  noticeable  except  when 
>led  to  the  purposes  of  puffing  tradesmen,  or  when  they 
more  than  ordinarily  stupid — must  naturally  receive 
ntion.  Now  and  again  a  strange  announcement  attracts 
tie  curiosity  in  the  present  day  j  but  for  good  specimens 
jhc  dark  and  mysterious  advertisement  we  must  go 
■irenty  years,  and  by  so  doing  we  shall  be  enabled  at 
Bmae  time  to  give  a  very  good  reason  why  people  who 
espond  through  the  public  papers  in  cipher  or  other- 
r  are  careful  not  to  attract  particular  attention.  This 
on  will  exhibit  itself  by  means  of  two  cryptographic 
rimens  selected,  which  appeared  in  the  Timcs^  and  were 
means  of  showing  that  writers  of  secret  signs  and  pass- 
Js  must  be  clever  indeed  if  they  would  evade  the  lynx 

K  those  who  are  ever  ready  for  a  little  mild  excitement, 
ose  hobby  it  is  to  solve  riddles  and  discover  puzzles. 
tainly  there  must  be  more  pleasure  in  finding  out  the 
uing  of  a  secret  "personal  than  in  answering  the 
blc  acrostic  charades  with  which  the  weekly  papers 
rai,  and  which  must  occupy  the  attention  of  thousands, 
le  quantities  of  correct  and  erroneous  replies  that  are 

kd  at  the  various  offices  may  be  accepted  as  evidence, 
early  part  of  1853  a  mad-looking  advertisement 
eared  in  the  Times,  which  ran  thus : — 

iNERENTOLA.  — N  bnxm  yt  ywd  nk  dlz  Kfs  wjfi  ymnx  U\  fr 
rtxy  fscnizx  yt  mjfw  >Tnf  esi  bmjs  du  wjyrws,  f  iiiub  qtsldts 
IS,  mjwj  It  bwnyf  f  kjb  qn'-jx  jfn'qn&l  uqjfxj  :  N  mfaj  gjjs  ajwd 
kwtr  mfund  xnshy  dlz  bjsy  fbfd. 

Icli  being  interpreted,  reads  :  "Cenerentola,  I  wish  to 
if  you  can  read  this,  and  am  most  anxious  to  hear  the 
jvhen  you  return,  and  how  long  you  remain  here.  Do 
a  few  lines,  darling,  please.  I  have  been  very  far 
'happy  since  you  went  away."  This  appeared  in 
1,  and  some  difficulty  appears  to  be  in  the  way, 


386 


mSTOHY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


for  it  is  not  till  the  nth  that  we  find  another,  which 
evidently  not  in  reply,  and  equally  evidently  not  satisfactocf^ 
It  says  : — 

CENERENTOLA. — Zsynq  rd  mjfwy  nx  xnlip  mfaj  ywnji  yt 
fs  jcufififynts  kwt  die  giy  hfs-ity.    Xnqj^hj  nx  xfs  jxy  nk 
jTTiij  hfixj  nx  sty  xoc  jhyji ;  nk  ny  nx  fgg  xytwnjx  bngg  gj  xnkyji] 
ymj  E'yy"'     Jt  du  wjrjtigjw  uw  htzzns'x  knwxy  uwtutxoyats 

ikny. 

As   this  system   simply  consisted  in    commencing 
alphabet  with   the  letter  f  and  continuing  in  regular 
quence,  the  explanation  of  the  last  specimen   is  all 
obvious ;  but  so  that  there  should  be  no  difliculty  or  d( 
about  it,  and  so  that  the  intriguers  should  know  they 
discovered,  some  literary  lockpicker  inserted  on  the  15! 
in  the  usual  personal  column  of  the  TimeSy  a  full  translation 
correcting  all  errors  of  the  printer,  and  concluding  with 
notice  in  the  secret  language,  which  must  have  frightened 
originators.     The  explanatory  advertisement  runs  thus  t— | 

CENERENTOLA,  until  my  beart  is  sick  have  I  tried  to  fran«. 
explanation  for  you,  but  cannot.     Silence  U  iinfest,  if  the 
cause  is  not  suspected  :  if  it  is  all  stories  will  be  sifted  to  the 
Do  you  remember  our  cousin's  first  proposition?    Think  of  it.- 
pstb  Dlz. 

The  cryptogram  at  the  end  is  a  warning,  for,  subjected 
the  test,  we  find  it  is  neither  more  nor  less  than  "  I  ki 
you.*'    This  seems  to  have  efleclually  silenced  the  origii 
but  the  marplots  were  probably  still  at  work,  for  on  the  ij 
of  February  another  notification  appears,  this  time  in  pi 
English,  and  running  thus  : — 

CENERENTOLA,  what  nonsense  1  Your  cousin's  proposition  ill 
absurd.  I  have  given  an  explanation — the  true  one — which  hul 
perfectly  satisfied  both  panics — a  thing  which  silence  never  could 
cfTected.     So  no  more  such  absurdity. 

How  miserably  small  the  inventor  of  this  cipher  mui 
have  felt,  and  how  ridiculous  those  most  interested  must 


^^^tm 


CURIOUS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS,  aSy 

re  appeared  to  each  other,  we  leave  to  the  imaginations  of 
>5e  readers  who  have  suddenly  been  stopped  in  any  grand 
;ht  to  find  themselves  as  idiotic  as  they  had  before  con- 
lered  themselves  ingenious.  Doubtless  the  Cenerentolans 
tt  not  want  for  sympathisers  even  amongst  those  who  affect 
yst  to  ridicule  them.  Much  about  the  same  time  as  the 
itance  we  have  given,  and  vhile  the  rage  for  secret  ad- 
ttising  was  in  its  meridian,  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
mples  of  the  kind  appeared — remarkable  as  much  for  its 
int  of  reason  as  for  anything  else.  On  February  20,  1 85  2, 
e  are  told  by  the  Qultrtarfy,  there  appeared  in  the  Ts'mes 
c  following  mysterious  lines  : — 

TIG  tjohw  it  tig  jfhiirvola  og  tig  psgvw. 
F.  D.  N. 

This  was  a  little  above  the  ordinary  hand,  and  many 
tempts  at  deciphering  it  failed.  At  last  the  following 
q>lanation  was  published  in  the  Quarterly.  If  we  take 
te  first  word  of  the  sentence,  Tig,  and  place  under  its 
«ond  letter,  i,  the  one  which  alphabetically  precedes  it, 
kd  treat  the  next  letters  in  a  similar  manner,  we  shall  have 
«  following  combination  : — 

T    i    g 
h   f 


Reading  the  first  letters  obliquely,  we  have  the  article 
The  ;  '*  if  we  treat  the  second  word  in  the  same  manner, 
e  following  will  be  the  result : — 

Tjohw 

i    n    g    V 

m   f     a 

e     t 

s . 

lich  read  in  the  same  slanting  way  produces  the  word 
-mes.  So  far  our  authority  is  correct,  and  here  we 
ive  him.     The  following  participle  and  article  are  of 


2S8 


niSTOR  Y  OF  AD  VERTISJNG, 


course  evident,  and  llien  comes  the  principal  word  of  ll 
sentence,    which    the    transcriber   makes  to   be  Jefft^ric 
which  it  is  doubtless  intended  to  be  ;  but  in  his  hurry  tl 
inventor  or  solver  has  made  a  mistake,  as  is  shown  upon 
attempt  at  the  same  conclusion  : — 


f  II 

i 

i 

r     V 

o 

I 

a 

«  g 

K 

ll 

q    u 

n 

k 

X 

f 

g 

& 

P    t 

m 

J 

y 

f 

r 

0    s 

I 

X 

e 

n    r 

k 

h 

V 

m  q 

i 

g 

V 

P 

f 

e 
d 

u 

t 

s 
r 

This  gives  the  word  as  Jeffemphdr,  an  expression  whK 
if  it  can  be  expressed  at  all,  is  very  dissimilar  from  that] 
expected,  after  being  told  that  the  sentence  read— 

The  Times  u  the  Jeffcries  of  ihe  press. 

We  have  taken  this  trouble  and  used  this  space  in 
endeavour   to  sec  if  the  letters  would  make  "  Jcffc 
because  we  have  always    had  a  suspicion   that    th( 
explainer    was  also  the    originator.      The   advertise 
without  being  rendered  into  Knglish,  could  not  have 
fied  the  malice  or  satisfied  the  spite  of  its  writer;  am 
any  one  else  had  discovered  the  key  and  made  the  al 
he  would  have  remarked  the  error,  it  is  but  fair  to 
that  *'  F.  D.  N.,"  whoever  else  he  may  have  been,  wa? 
individual  whom  a  writer  in  the  Quarterly  Hrvim;  a 
of  years  or   so   afterwards,  described   as  the  friend] 
'*  was  curious  and  intelligent  enough  to  extract  the 
English  out  of  it,"  and  whose  design  we  commenced' 
Was  he   an  author  who  had   been  slated  in  the 
However,  as  the  advertiser  evidently  meant  Jeffreys^j 
ever  he  may  have  fancied  to  spell  it,  the  explanation 


Cl'/t/Ol/S  Ah'D  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS.   289 


be  taken  as  all  right*  This  and  the  preceding  advertise- 
ment must  have  set  people  thinking  that  it  was  hardly  safe 
to  trust  to  secrets  in  the  papers,  no  matter  how  carefully 
disguised;  but  the  crowning  blow  to  cryptographic  com- 
munication was  given  by  means  of  the  "  Flo  "  intrigue, 
^hich  created  some  little  sensation,  and  was  the  cause  of  a 
good  deal  of  amusement  at  the  close  of  the  year  1853  and 
the  beginning  of  1S54.  On  November  29  of  the  first- 
named  year  the  following  was  first  seen  in  the  Times : — 

FLO.— 1821  82374  09  30  S4541.    844532  18140650.    8  54584  2401 
322650  526  08555  94400  021  [2  30  84541  22  05114650.    726 
85400  021, 

II  may  be  as  well  to  premise  that  the  idea  of  the  *'  Flo" 
S)"stem  was  to  make  an  alphabet  with  the  nine  numerals 
and  the  cipher,  and  the  correspondents  evidently  prided 
themselves,  poor  innocents,  on  having  arranged  the  letters 
arbitrarily  and  not  in  regular  order,  and  fixed  the  tell-tale 
capital  I  when  standing  alone  at  8  :— - 

01234567 

y  u  o  i  e  a  d  k 
s  t  n  m  r  1  q  g 
X  c 


8    9 
h    i 

w  p 


So  the  communication  read  :  *'  Flo,  thou  voice   of  my 


Our  informalion  of  this  advertisement,  and  the  duo  to  il5  explana.* 

was.  u  already  slated,  obtained  from  an  article  in  the  Quarterly 

On  reference  to  the  Times  to  discover  whether  the  Jcffcrics 

was  right  or  not,  wc  could  not  for  a  long  time  find  the  parlicu- 

DOlice  we  were  in  search  of,     At  last,  after  the  above  was  written, 

ler  dale  February  10,  it  was  found  ;  and  then  we  saw  that  the  word 

"Jfhiiwola,"  which  subjected  to  the  process  as  above,  will  give 

required  name.     We  have  preferred  to  explain  tliis  in  full,  as  the 

^rferly  is   undoubtedly    entitled  to  the   merit  of  deciphering  the 

piit£le,  if  not  to  anything  else  ;  and  any  alteration  or  correction  of  ours 

VOuld  have  detracted  from  such  merit,  wliich  is  original,  and  without 

rhich  the  quaint  lilicl  mij^ht  still  have  remained  in  obscurity.     Besides, 

shows  buw  a  small  printer's  enor  may  spoil  the  calculations  of  a 

:k,  in  matters  like  tills. 


!90 


JIISTOR  Y  or  AD  VER  TISING. 


» 


heart  1  Berlin,  Thursday.  I  leave  next  Monday,  and  sM 
press  you  to  my  heart  on  Saturday.  God  bless  you."  How 
they  communicated  for  the  next  month  does  not  appear, 
but  judging  by  the  quotation  just  given,  it  is  to  be  supposed 
personally,  and  that  another  separation  occurred  soon  after^ 
for  on  December  21  there  is  this : — 

■pLO.— iSar  82374  29  30  84541  8  53  02  522450.  8  3300  021 
•^  324418524844-  8522751021493711444844023781.  80426 
02I  52  326352  08585  12  8459  42116  021  S8354  505449  59144 
632344.   31  8355  7449  021  S543  526  021  3101  95270  1S51  31  5430 

544  42126  021.      726  S54OO  02I. 

Which,  errors  included,  reads :  "  Flo,  thou  voice  of  my 
heart,  I  am  so  lonely.  I  miss  you  more  than  ever.  I  look 
at  your  picture  every  night.  I  send  you  an  Indian  shawl 
to  wrap  rou/d  you  while  asleep  after  dinner.  It  will  keciJ 
you  warm,  and  you  must  fancy  that  xvU  arms  are  round 
you,  God  bless  you."  Two  days  afterwards  the  neit 
appears,  though  the  translation  hardly  gives  a  substantial 
reason  for  the  repetition : — 

•pLO.— 184   5501    850   84227   8   44945"    3'-     1821  82374  =9  Jo 

^  84541  8  53  02  522450.  8  3300  021  3244  1852  4S44.  8  5237 
51  0214  937"44  4S140  23781.  8  0426  021  52  326352  08585  U 
8459  4^<26  021  88354  505449  59144  63224  31  8355  7449  021  854) 
526  021  3101  95270  1S51  30  5430  544  42126  021.  726  85400  Q2L 
828  8  62  5284  021, 

This  makes  :  "  Flo,  the   last  was  wrong,    I   repeat 
Thou  voice  of  my  heart,  I  am  so  lonely.     I  miss  you  in< 
than  ever.     I  look  at  your  picture  ev?/ry  night.     I  send  yotf ' 
an  Indian  shawl  to  wrap  round  you  while  asleep  after  dinar. 
It  will  keep  you  warm,  and  you  must  fancy  my  amis  are 
round  you.    God  bless  you.     How  I  do  love  you  ! "    Itwii 
jc  liard  to  discover,  if  the  last  was  wrong,  how  this 
be  right,  as  for  each  error  he  corrects  he  makes  anotht 
Then  we  go  on  to  llie  new  year,  and  on  January  2  rect 
racnce  with  the  following : — 


CVKIOl/S  AND  ECCENTmC  ADVERTISEMENTS.  291 

"PLO.— 30  282  5284  S53  85990  57532  31  30  5374  5S57317  9423 
■*•  5  S56  64453.  o2<  544  30  5334  <2  722S  1851  18^44  305 
7S5274  29  044327  02.1  12  8454  9423  021  12  62  1S3270  12  42217.S. 
S  0S555  140  5i6  044  021  0222  S4314  13  34  50  29142  50  021  753 
726  S5400  021  1821  S2174  29  30  S4541. 

Difficulties  seem  lo  have  been  removed  by  this  time,  for 
when  the  magic  of  the  key  has  been  tried  upon  it  tlie  adver- 
tisement just  quoted  says  this :  **  Flo,  my  own  love,  I 
am  happy  again ;  it  is  like  awakening  from  a  bad  dream. 
YoiJ  are,  my  liwe  [?  life],  to  know  that  there  is  a  chance  of 
seeing  you,  to  hear  from  you,  to  do  thin^^s  to  enough  [there 
is  an  evident  bungle  here].  I  shall  try  and  see  you  soon. 
Write  to  me  as  often  as  you  can.  God  bless  you,  thou  vowce 
of  my  heart ! "  The  wise  men  who  had  been  content  to 
understand  this  so  far,  now  thought  it  time  that  these  turtle- 
doves should  know  they  were  not  so  wise  as  they  supposed, 
and  that  their  cipher  was  being  read  regularly.  So  on  Janu- 
ary 6  the  Timts  contained  the  following  : — 

"pLO.— 1821  82374  29  3g  84541.  828  8  62  5284  021.  828  544021 
•T  0S555  021  84  5536  19  1830  094  327.  8  752  044  021  8557327 
83180214  6545327  8S5 1  882156  7384  12  S4  83i8o2r.  185270  924 
03'4  ^y^^  541*44  8  9454  2218327  811  0495  451332  9423  021  02I 
54430S2456  305394308294,  1821  3244  1852  5394  95448455  726 
85400021. 

And  this  when  read  must  have  caused  some  feeling  of 
consternation,  as  it  was  an  evident  burlesque  of  the  real 
correspondent's  style:  "Flo,  thou  voice  of  my  heart! 
How  I  do  love  you!  How  are  you?  Shall  you  be  laid 
up  this  spring?  I  can  sec  you  walking  with  your  darling. 
What  would  I  give  to  be  with  you  !  Thanks  for  your  last 
letter.  I  fear  nothing  but  separation  from  you.  You  are 
my  world,  my  life,  my  hope.  Thou  more  thnn  life,  fare- 
well !  God  bless  you  !**  The  natural  effect  of  this  was  to 
cause  an  alarm  to  be  given,  and  so  on  the  following  day  the 
following  was  inserted  in  the  famous  private  column  : — 

FLO.— 8  9454  6454401  214739844306307284446.    843r4  5i2274 
12  0214  943426  "326352  0S585."  9.  2.  8177327853.  S1770 


W^'^^l 


391 


laSTOKY  OF  ADVERT/SIXG, 


m 


thc^ 

run 

inn 


Which  drops  the  curtain  upon  "  Flo"  and  her  lover,  who  is 

more  than  likely  not  to  have  been  her  husband — and  this 
without  affecting  the  question  as  to  her  being  married.  It 
is  translated  in  these  words :  *'  Flo. — I  fear,  deares^^ 
our  cipher  is  discovered.  Write  at  once  to  your  friend^" 
*'  Indian  Shawl,"  P.  O.,  Buckingham,  Bucks."  So  much 
for  secret  correspondences,  which  arc  not  often  lo  be 
seen  nowadays,  though  when  any  one  is  found  foolish 
enough  to  confide  in  the  press  under  these  circumstances, 
the  comic  papers  almost  invariably  make  capital  out  of  th' 
communications,  and  give  to  their  less  acute  readers  fi 
information.  Here  is  one  we  fell  across  the  other  day  i 
the  TeUp-aph.  We  must  admit  to  a  decided  ignorance  as 
to  what  it  means,  but  perhaps  the  reader,  profiting  by  the 
foregoing,  will  be  able  to  decipher  it  :— 

jy"  ANGAROO  revived  by  bones,  though  nearly  choked  by  a  piece  of 
•^  *•  one  after  swallowing  five  hard  biscuits.  Troubled.  Four  cat 
two  six  camel  five  two  one  eight  pig  one  boar  in  every  way.  Four  nine 
leopard  one  four  elephant  three  four  seven  boor.     Faithful  until  deaLb. 

This  looks  like  an  attempt  to  set  the  cryptographists  on  a 
wrong  scent,  and  probably  means  nothing.  If  it  really  is  %. 
genuine  communication,  its  scope  must  be  extremely  limited 
Many  of  the  mysterious  advertisements  which  appear  in  the 
usual  style  are  very  noticeable,  though  of  late  the  art  hai 
fallen  a  prey  to  the  vendors  of  quack  medicines  and  cheap 
books,  and  the  managers  of  some  theatres  and  music  halls, 
What  has  been  characterised,  and  with  every  probability  of 
truth,  as  the  most  ghastly  advertisement  that  ever  appeared 
in  a  public  journal  is  the  following,  which  is  taken  from  the 
Times  of  the  year  1S45.  It  certainly  is  a  most  frightful 
paragraph : — 

TO    THE     PARTY     WHO     POSTS     HIS     LETTERS     1] 
PRINCE'S     STREET,     LEICESTER     SQUARE. —Yot 
family  is  now  in  a  stale  of  exciiement  unbearable.     Your  nttcntion 
calletl  to  an  advertisement  in  Wednesday's  Morning  Advertiser,  headc 
A  Ijody  found  drowned  at  Deptford."    After  your  ovowaj  lo  yc 


CURIOO'S  AXD  ECCENTRIC  ADyERTISEMENTS.    2^3 

friend  u  to  what  yoa  might  do»  he  has  heen  to  sec  the  decomposed 
remains,  accompanied  by  others.  The  features  are  gone  ;  bat  there  are 
marks  on  tlic  arm  ;  so  thai  unless  they  hear  from  you  lo-day,  it  will  satisfy 
ihem  that  the  remains  are  those  of  iheir  misguided  relative,  and  stepH 
will  be  directly  taken  to  place  them  in  the  family  vault,  as  they  cannot 
bear  the  idea  of  a  pauper's  funcra). 

The  most  horrible  subject  has,  however,  a  ludicrous  side, 
and  the  idea  of  the  decomposed  remains  objecting  to  paro- 
liaJ  interference  is  as  dreadfully  funny  as  the  matter  gener- 
ly  is  dreadfully  shocking.  In  another  notice,  five  years 
later,  there  is,  as  it  were,  a  plaintive  moan,  the  cry  of  a  weak 
and  disticssed  woman,  who  has  no  "  strong  mind  "  to  enable 
her  to  bear  up  against  infidelity  and  loss.     Listen  to  it : — 

n^HE  one'Winged  Dove  must  die  unless  the  Crane  returns  to  be  a 
•^      shield  against  her  enemies. 

Far  different  is  the  next,  which  is  a  couple  of  years  later, 
and  which  displays  as  much  strength  of  purpose  and  self- 
dependence  as  its  forerunner  betrays  weakness : — 

IT  is  enough  ;  one  man  alone  upon  earth  have  I  found  noble.  Away 
from  me  for  ever  !  Cold  heart  and  mean  spirit,  you  have  lost  what 
millions— empires — could  not  have  bought,  but  which  a  single  word 
truthfully  and  nobly  spoken  might  have  made  your  own  to  all  eternity. 
Yet  are  you  forgiven :  depart  in  peace  :  I  rest  in  my  Redeemer. 

The  reader  can  imagine  the  flashing  eyes  and  indignant 
face  of  a  proud  and  wronged  woman,  as  this  is  read;  and 
it  might  well  be  taken  as  the  text  for  a  whole  volume  of  a 
modern  novel.  The  next  which  we  select  is  still  from  the 
Timts^  and  appeared  several  days  in  succession  in  February 
1853.   It  forms  a  good  companion  to  that  which  precedes  it : 

TO  M.  L.  L. — M.  L,  I,.,  j-oa  have  chosen  your  own  lot :  mny  it  be 
a  happy  one  I  and  if  it  be  $0  I  would  not  have  you  think  of  the 
detobte  heart  you  leave  behind  ;  but  oh  !  my  child,  if  sorrow  ihould 
ever  overtake  you,  if  you  «hould  find,  when  too  late,  that  you  have 
been  leaning  on  a  broken  reed ;  then,  my  Maria,  come  back  to  her 
whose  heait  has  ever  clierished  you  ;  she  will  always  be  ready  to  receive 


• 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 

Maybe  M.  L  L.  lias  proved  herself  devoid  of  gnti- 
tude,  and  left  a  kind  home  to  follow  the  fortunes  of  some 
adventurer.  But  the  good  heart  of  the  advertiser  does  not 
turn  sour,  nor  does  she  give  vent  to  repining  ;  and  so  even  in 
advertisements  do  we  see  the  finest  as  well  as  the  worst  sides 
of  human  nature.  In  the  same  paper  that  contained  the  ad- 
dress just  given  we  stumbled  across  one  of  the  most  laconic 
notices  ever  seen.     It  says — 

IF  11.  R,  will  Return,  I  will  forgive  him, 
E.  R. 

This  is  evidently  from  a  relenting  parent,  whose  sternness 
has  been  subdued  by  the  continued  absence  of  his  prodigal 
Most  likely  the  latter  returned,  and  went  away  again  as  soon 
as  "  the  guv'nor"  showed  signs  of  resuming  sway.  And  so 
on  through  one  of  those  wretched  liramas  with  which  all 
people  must  be  acquainted,  in  which  the  principal  charac- 
ters are  a  broken-hearted  mother,  a  worn-out  and  prema- 
turely old  father,  and  an  utterly  demoralised,  drunken,  and 
perhaps  dishonest  son.  who  is  most  likely  a  brutal  husband 
as  well.  Of  quite  another  kind  is  this,  which  is  also  from 
the  Times: — 

TO  EQUATOR.— FoTtuna  audaccs  juvat    Viiicil  omnia  vcril 
E,  W. 

As  we  have  before  remarked,  the  newspapers  of  to-daf  I 
give  us  no  such  specimens  of  secret  and  mysterious  advtf^j 
tising  as  those  we  have  unearthed,  although  the  opportune 
ties  are  far  more  numerous  than^and  we  presume  the  ocCA^ 
sions  quite  as  frequent  as — they  were  twenty  years  ago,  for 
every  daily  paper,  and  a  good  many  of  the  weeklies,  now 
keep  special  columns  for  the  display  of  private  announce- 
ments. Quite  unique,  however,  in  its  way  is  one  which 
appeared  in  LloyiVs  half-a-dozcn  years  ago.     It  says  l!ut 

BARRIET  AHS   HARRT    OOMFTON 

A'^l^  wcU. — 124,  Stamford -street,  Lambeth. 


CURIOUS  AND  ECCENTRIC  ADVERTISEMENTS.   295 

The  ignorance  may  be  crass,  but  we  are  bound  to  con- 
fess that  even  now  we  are  not  aware  of  the  claims  upon 
publicity  of  Mr  and  Mrs  Compton.  The  infonnalion  is 
given  in  style  worthy  of  a  royal  bulletin,  and  doubtless  it 
much  interested  all  whom  it  may  have  concerned.  A  very 
faint  attempt  at  cryptography  is  made  in  an  advertisement 
which  appeared  comparatively  recently  in  one  of  the  penny 
papers,  the  writer  of  which  must  have  had  great  faith  in  the 
Uulness  of  the  British  public  if  he  thought  that  backward 
writing  would  not  be  at  once  detected.     This  is  it : — 

TUCKY  6tl.  and  4d.  ! ! — Came  back  by  train  a  few  minutes  after 
•^  meeting  you  tbat  forenoon,  the  only  real  reason  for  my  coming. 
Always  the  sjunc  feeling  for  you  as  expressed.  Od  eiirw  ecno  ot  pihs 
ot  yft&  Qoy  evah  nees  silit.    Quite  efos  Kolias.    Will  sometimes  advertise 

The  next  is  a  specimen  of  the  present  day,  and  is  from 
the  Times,  Want  of  logical  consequence  is  its  chief  charac- 
teristic : — • 

CANNOT  mistake  the  decision  of  continued  exceeding  courtesy. 
Awaited,  but  could  not  identify.  Forgive,  dear,  if  1  have  been 
too  superstitious.  'Tifi  the  6rst  fault,  though  twice  repeated,  and  yuu 
slUi  hold  the  lash. 

Readers  may  possibly  remember  two  rather  singular  ad- 
vertisements which  appeared  in  the  Tde^aph  quite  recently, 
and  were  full  of  gratitude  to  the  firm  which  had  unwittingly 
led  to  a  pleasant  if  questionable  acquaintance  between  two 
persons.  After  this  luncheon-baskets  will  probably  be 
carried  by  all  gentlemen  anxious  for  adventure— that  is, 
when  they  travel  on  lines  the  authorities  of  which  graciotisly 
permit  ihdr  caterers  to  supply  them.     Here  is  the  first : — 

THE  Udy  who  travelled  from  Bedford  to  London  by  Midland  train 
on  the  night  of  the  4lh  inst,  can  now  MEET  the  GENTLE- 
MAN  who  sliarcd  with  her  the  contents  of  his  railway  luncheon 
basket.  She  enjoys  the  recollection  of  that  pleasant  meal,  and  would 
like  to  know  if  he  is  going  on  another  journey.  Will  keep  any  ap- 
(wintmenL  made  at  the  Criterion  in  Ticcadilly. — Answer  to  A. 

The  application  seems  to  have  had  the  desired  effect,  for 
a  day  or  two  afterwards  this  was  published  ; — 


29G 


inSTOR  Y  OF  AD  VER  7ISJNG. 


A      will  meet  yon  at  ihe  Criterion,  on  Wednesday,  at  tlirec. 
"**•   going  on  anoUier  journey  shortly,  and  will  provide  lanchi 
basket.— F.  M. 

Any  one  who  has  travelled  a  distance  by  Midland 
any  other  of  the  lines  supplied  with  refreshments  by  Spi( 
&   Pond,    must   have   noted   what   a   great   boon    to 
traveller  is  the  well-stocked  basket,  which  can  be  tak< 
in  full  at  one  station  and  delivered  out  wholly  or  partial!] 
cmpiy,  according  as  appetite  serves,  at  another.     Yet 
luncheon-basket  is  a  very  small  item  in  the  revolutionise 
total     Those  who  have  sufifered  under  the  old  system 
railway  refreshments,  will  admit  that  Spiers  &  Pond  ful 
deserve  whatever  credit  has  been   given   them  for    the 
efforts  in  the  public  interest.     Ten  years  ago  no  man  : 
his  senses  would  have  dreamt  of  applying  for  food  or  drii 
at  a  railway  buffet  while  he  could  go  elsewhere ;  now  Spiel 
&  Pond  daily  serve  thousands  who  desert  the  old  familiar 
taverns  and  crowd  the  bars  at  the  various  City  station! 
Among  the  many  great  feats  in  the  way  of  providing  ft 
the  hungry  and  the  thirsty  performed  by  this  firm  is  on( 
which  has  claims  for  particular  notice,  as  it  is  told  in 
official  report  of  a  Wimbledon  meeting.     For  the  campinj 
time   the  following  is  the  record :    Of  bread  there  wei 
eaten  25,000  lbs. ;  of  butter  3  tons;  of  cheese  i  ton; 
bacon  11  cwt. ;  of  hams  3  Ions ;  of  eggs  23,350  ;  of  re 
52,677  ;  of  flour  36  sacks  ;  of  tea  1967  lbs. ;  and  of  coffc 
2240  lbs.;  15  tons  weight  of  meat  were  eaten,  and  i446foT 
with  626  ducklings,  and  304  goslings.    In  the  way  offish, 
consumption  of  salmon  reached  6200  lbs.,  with   1*667  soU 
400  turbot,  80  brill,  and  2330  lobsters.     Vegetables  w< 
devoured   to   the  amount  of  12  tons,  to  which  must 
added  40,000  lettuces  and  500  quarts  of  shelled  peas, 
fancy  pastry  5000   pieces   were  made,  with    1120    lbs. 
biscuits,  and  2460  quarts  of  cream  and  water  ice.     Add 
these  720  baskets  of  strawberries,  75  lbs.  of  grapes,  4< 
pine-apples,  287  tongues,  10,800  bottles  of  aerated  w 


UOUS  AXD  ECCENTJ^TC  ADy£K7ISEAfE.\TS.  297 

15  533  gallons  of  wine,  130  dozen  and  312  gallons 
Suits,  348  hogsheads  of  beer,  275  lbs.  of  tobacco,  300 
s  of  cigars,  67  gallons  of  salad  oil,  3  J  hogshead  of 
jar,  150  lbs.  of  mustard,  6000  gallons  of  claret  cup, 
^s  of  lemons,  84  tons  of  ice  brought  direct  from  the 
Bividc  from  Norway,  33  gallons  of  various  sauces,  120 
ns  of  pickles,  25,000  sandwiches,  34  tons  of  sugar,  30 
of  currants,  and  25,000  lbs.  of  *' Volunteer''  plumcakc. 
lition  to  these,  large  quantities  of  wines,  spirits,  &c., 
tpplied  to  sutlers,  messmen,  and  volunteers.  On 
lent  occasions,  when,  for  reasons  best  known  to 
;lves,  the  Rifle  Association  has  provided  its  own  com- 
ariat,  it  has  been  discovered  that  the  efforts  of  Spiers 
were  by  no  means  overpraised  at  the  time,  and 
laudatory  notices  received  by  the  men  who  came 
lUstralia  to  teach  the  mother  country  a  profitable 
were  well  deserved.  Spiers  &  Pond  have,  it  is 
;t  ample  recognition  from  the  press ;  yet  now  and 
lose  gentlemen  who  consider  it  the  whole  duty  of  a 
ist  to  sneer  at  ever^'body  and  everytliing  have  had 
lal  fling,  and  have  written  about  pretentious  eating- 
Flceepers,  forgetful  of  the  fact  that  a  dozen  years  or 
go  they  were  crying  their  eyes  out  because  the  weary 
flier  in  Great  Britain  could  nowhere  find  the  accom- 

Kn  he  was  so  anxious  to  pay  for.     \Vc  have  been 
not  to  stray  into  the  opposite  extreme,  though  a 
urse  of  railway  journeying  under  the  old  regime  ot 

Idy  pork-pies  and  stale  Banbury  cakes  has  made  us  feel 
rU  disposed  to  a  firm  whose  name  has  already  passed 
ffproverb. 

me  little  interest  was  exhibited  in  the  annexed,  which 
ared  in  the  Times  a  few  weeks  back,  and,  according 
te  side  espoused,  looks  like  just  indignation  or  brutal 
ice : — 

fLD  this  meet  the  eye  of  the  lady  who  got  into  the  12.30  train 

[cw  Cross  Station  on  Fndny,  May  15,  with  two  boys,  one  of 

evidently juit  recnvering  from  an  illness,  she  maybe  pleased 


39S 


IHS7VKY  OF  advehtisikg. 


lo  learn  that  three  of  (he  four  young  ladies  who  were  in  the  carrisce 
very  ill  with  the  measles,  and  ihe  health  of  llie  fourth  ii  far  from  ml 

her  relations  cuuld  dcMre. 


ll  has  been  quite  the  fashion  to  say  how  wrong  it  was 
the  lady  with  the  sick  boys  to  get  into  a  train  and  sprea 
infection ;  and  nobody  secuis  to  have  thought  that  the  poof'' 
lads  wanted  change  of  air — liad  perhaps  been  ordered  it   As 
no  special  provision  is  made  for  the  travelling  sick — or  for  ihc 
matter  of  that,  for  the  travelling  healthy — the  fault,  if  fault 
there  be,  lies  not  with  the  mother,  who  was  anxious  for  the 
recovery  of  her  cliildren,  but  with  the  railway  authoriti* 
Judging  from  the  tone  of  the  advertisement,  we  should  thi 
that  the  advertiser  would  have  resented  any  intcrfereW 
had  his  or  her  young  ladies   been  travelling  as  invali( 
instead  of  being  jn  that  state  of  health  wliich  is  most 
ject  to  the  attacks  of  disease.     The  case  is  hard,  argu« 
from  either  side,  but  it  seems  very  unfair  to  cast  the  bh 
all  one  way. 

I'he  last  example  we  shall  give  of  this  kind  of  advertisic 
shows  lliat  extended  space  is  used  for  "  personals,"  witboul 
any  extension  of  interest,  the  following  being  but  a  raiiil 
kind  of  raving  on  the  part  of  a  weak-minded  man  alter  an 
obstinate  woman.     It  appeared  early  during  tlie  pi 
year  (1874)  in  the  Tde^-aph: — 

TITARY  ANN  C. — Do  return  home.  You  Inbour  under  an  ilh 
•^•■^  \\lmt  you  wish  to  accuse  me  with  does  not  txist. 
solemnly  declare.  I  have  at  last  a  good  position,  but  am  so  wretc 
that  I  cannot  attend  to  my  duties  properly.  Many  hnppicr  rclunai 
the  1st.  God's  blessing  be  \vilh  thee,  and  that  He  may  tend  ihy 
to  believe  me  in  truth.  I'ut  six  years  of  love  and  happiness  a| 
your  accusation,  and  you  must  feci  that  you  are  wTong.  Oh,  yott 
very,  very  wrong.  Do  write  and  give  me  an  appointment,  so  that 
pincss  may  be  rc-cstabllshed.  You  must  be  very  unhappy,  but 
God's  sake  do  not  be  so  strong*ininded.  My  love  and  devotion 
unaltered.  For  your  own  peace,  my  sweet,  pretty,  good  wife,  coi 
back,  \Vlicn  death  parts  it  is  sad  enough,  but  to  jiart  while  tii 
and  without  true  cause,  creates  and  leaves  wretchedness  to 
Come  back  to  your  unhappy  bui  irue-loviug  husband. 


CURIOUS  AiVD  ECCENTRrC  ADVERTISEMENTS,  299 


These  last  extracts  are  quite  sufTicient  to  show  the  style 
ich  now  obtains  in  this  class  of  advertisements,  and  to 
)ve  that  what  a  score  of  years  ago  promised  to  be  a  ncver- 
ling  source  of  amusement  has  become  sadly  deficient  of 
original  properties. 

Familiar  to  many  people,  among  curious  announcements, 
be  the  following,  which  is  one  of  many  similar  that  have 
tinoc  to  time  appeared  in  the  leading  journal : — 

^HE  CHANCELLOR  of  the  EXCHEQUER  acknowledges  the 
receipt  of  the  firel  halves  of  iwo £^\Q  notes,  conscience- money, 
br  unpaid  Incomc<Ta.\. 

The  man  who  sends  conscience-money  for  income-tax 
must  have  been  virtuous  indeed,  if  the  evasion  of  that  im- 
post has  been  through  life  his  worst  sin.  There  are  many 
Otherwise  estimable  persons  whose  greatest  pride  it  is  that 
they  have  never  paid  income-tax  unless  compelled.  Yet 
men  have  in  ordinary  matters  the  greatest  abliorrence 
ything  mean  or  paltry,  and  their  general  conduct  might 
fely  contrasted  with  that  of  the  bestowers  of  conscience- 
Inoney.  So,  after  all,  there  is  something  more  than  a  joke 
in  the  humourist's  idea  of  a  grand  new  patriotic  song  called 
"Never  pay  your  taxes  till  you're  summoned,  my  boys  !" 

Those  who  wear  artificial  teeth  must  have  been  now  and 
again  indescribably  shocked  by  advertisemenls  like  the  fol- 
ilowing,  which,  scarce  a  short  time  back,  are  getting  more 
and  more  frequent,  so  that  what  at  first  appeared  a  revolting 
nddie  to  the  many,  may  have  now  developed  into  a  lucra- 
tive pursuit  for  the  few.  Is  it  right  to  suppose  that  new  sets 
of  teeth  are  made  up  from  second-hand  materials  ?  If  so, 
how  horrible  I 

WANTED  to  PURCHASE  some  OLD  ARTIFICIAL  TEETH. 
Persons  having  ihc  ahovc  lo  sell  can  apply,  with  the  Icclh,  or, 
XL  forwarded  by  post  ihcir  value  will  be  sent  per  rctum.— Mr . 

Theatrical  advertisements  arc.  as  has  been  remarked, 
often    very  funny,  and    wliclher  from   ignorance    on    the 


300  HiSTOR  Y  OF  ADVERTISISG. 

part  of    the  writers,   or    the    prevalence   of    technolc 
the  columns  of   the  Era  absolutely  teem    wjth  startii^ 
notices,  which  when  coupled  with  the  really  remarkable 
well   as    "  original "    correspondence,   and    the    provinci 
critiques,  make  the  chief  theatrical  organ  one  of  the  mi 
genuine  among  comic  papers,  and  this  is  none   the 
so  because  the  Erds  comicality  is  unintentional-    A 
specimen  of  the  general  style  is  given  in  an  advertisemc 
appearing  in  March  1874,  and  if  our  reproducing  it  will 
of  any  use  to  Messrs  Gcnza  &  Volta,  they  are  quite  wel- 
come.    In  fact  it  would  be  sad  to  think  that  sucli  an  effor 
should  go  unrewarded  : — 

Nil  AcImirarL 

GONZA  and  VOLTAI 

CONZA  and  VOLTA  !  •  I 
GONZA  and  VOLTA  I ! ! 

The  Modem  Hercules  and  Achilles.  The  GoHalhao  Cymt 
The  Champions  of  Olympia  Resuscitated.  The  greatest  Athletes 
the  Christian  Eta. 

M.  DE  GONZA,  the  famous  Mexican  Athlete  of  the  Golden 
and  Olympic  Club;  also  of  Crj-stal  Palace,  Cirques  Napoleon  and' 
rimpcralrice  celebrity,  and  late  Proprietor  of  Gonza's  Transatlj 
Combination  Company,  has  much  pleasure  in  annoiincinf;  that  (I 
Colossal  Sensation  he  is  about  submitting  to  the  World's  criticism  i*1 
course  of  progression,  and  that  he  has  secured  the  serA-ices  of  £D001 
VOLTA,  the  grandest  Aerial  Bar  Performer  of  (he  period,  who 
have  the  honour  of  making  his  First  Appearance  in  England  in 
junction  with  M.  DE  GONZA'S  New  Aerial  Athletic  Pcrfori 
M.  DE  GONZA»  without  desiring  to  eulogise,  prognosticates  thatl 
coming  achievement  will  introduce  an  astonishing  epoch  in  gymnactic 
In  ancient  days  mvthologicfll  conceptions  were  framed  by  senile  philor 
ophers  for  the  wonder  and  delectation  of  tlie  inhabitants  of  the 
B.C..  more  particularly  during  the  existence  of  Rome  under  the  Empii 
when  the  stupendous  Colosseum  lived  in  its  glory,  and  where  mj 
witnessed  the  famous  gladiatoriftl  combats.  In  those  mighty  dayij 
heroism,  when  the  great  pan-HclIcnic  festivals  were  held,  every  fo« 
year  in  Olympia,  instituted  by  Iphitus,  King  of  Elis,  the  ninth  century 
B.C.,  when  Athletic  revets  and  Icarian  games  were  a«  prevalent  as  cigaf 
smoking  in  this  generation,  people  were  more  prone  to  countenance 
the  possible  existence  and  mar\'eUou5  exploits  of  the  gods  and  goddcs&et. 


I     CUKIO 


CURIOUS  AXD  ECCE!^TRTC  ADVERTISEMENTS.  301 

Evanescent  ages  have  floNra  by.  and  in  ibe  sentiments  of  millions  there 
Dw  subsi&ts  a  certain  amount  of  familiarity  with  the  intrepid  and 
lliant  deeds  of  those  illustrious  myibDlo;^iail  gods  tiercules  and 
tchiUes.  They  have  been  quoted  aitd  spoken  of  so  often  that  their 
ctitionsncss  is  forgotten.  They  have  ingratiated  their  fabulous  selves 
Bio  the  good  graces  of  mankind,  and  become  entwined  around  Lheir 
Pmds  like  the  ivy  around  the  gnarled  and  knotted  onk  ;  and,  aJtbough 
aituries  have  passed  away,  this  nurtured  concatenation  of  deep- 
iOoted  imaginations  have  not  proven  altogether  futile,  for  these  Icgen- 

Rid  dauntless  heroes  actually  do  exist  in  the  persons  of 
GONZA  and  VOLTA^ 
The  Cyclopean  Atldctes  of  llie  Age. 
lorites,   ascetics,  persons  of  secluded   and  fastidious    natures, 
and  misanlhropists,  all  will  be  metamorpho&ed  into  congenial 
luits,  and  be  reconciled  to  the  world  and  its  pleoitures  after  witness* 
ig  these  gigantillos  and  wonders  of  creation  in  the  most  surprising 
bd  surpassingly  elegant  gymnastic  exliibition  hitherto  placed  before 
Ek  appreciative  nation,  the  production  of  which  due  notice  wUl  be 
iven.     Meanwhile  all  commtuiicalioQs  are  to  be  addressed  to  M.  de 
lOXZA, . 

Turning  from  such  extremely  professional  exponents  of 

rt  and  literature,  we  are  reminded  of  one  who  stands  in 

iftitc  an  opposite  position  to  that  of  the  Cyclopean  athletes, 

►r  Vellfere,  the  champion  and  foremost  representative  of  the 

acacted  and  unread,"  of  the  theorists  who  would  regen- 

rale  the  drama  with  theit  own  works,  and,  if  they  could 

uly  once  be  performed,  would  mark  an  epoch  in  the  his- 

iry  of  the  stage.     Doubtless  they  would.     About  five  years 

IP  the  enthusiastic  Doctor — who,  being  a  foreigner,  has  a 

rrfeci  right  to  regenerate  the  British  drama,  as  well  as  the 

ritish  Constitution^burst  forth  in  the  Timesy  and  at  once 

laced  himself  at  the  head  of  that  glorious  minority  which, 

iring  to  the   iniquitous   "ring"   formed  by  a  clique  of 

bthoTS,  managers,  and  critics,  cannot  get  its  plays,  mar- 

fcUously  good  as  they  are,  produced;  and  thus  not  only 

[ley,  but  the  great  British  public  are    sufferers    under  a 

^icm  which  Vellfere  &  Co.  will  yet  expose  or  perish  in 

lie  attempt.      The  first  ad\ertisement  of  the  regenerator 

bpeared  on  October  a.  1869.     It  ran  thus : — 


3Pa 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISiNC, 


TO  ihe  MATRON'S  of  the  LEOmMATE  DRAMA  and  lol 
PLAY-GOING  PUBLIC  in  GENERAL. 
Indies  and  Gentlemen, — As  a  general  outcry  arose  «ome  cor 
able  lime  ago  that  there  was  a  great  dearth  of  good,  original 
dramas,  and  as  ihe  recent  so'called  original  productions  of  Ki 
dranialisls  have  failed  to  stifle  it — becnuse  they  have  either 
English   society  or  have  been  simiily  adaptations  from  the  Fi 
respecting  a  slate  of  society  which  cannot  exist  here,  and  in  both 
have  proved  unpalatable  to  the  English,  and,  therefore,  unsuccessfa 
I,  who  am  a  writer  in  more  than  one  language,  resolved  to  prodt 
a  drama  on  purely  English  topics,  and  1  was  guided  by  the  dictum^ 
your  immortal  poet,   Ryron,  Uiat   "Truth   is  stranger  than    fictit 
1>ecause  all  fictitious  Kiluations  prove  less  '*  sensational "  (pardon 
the  vcmncular),  as  produced  by  those  dramatists,  with  all  the  poi 
accessories  and  machinery  of  the  stage,  than  the  simplest  police 
from  the  daily  papers.      It   took   me  more  than  a  year  of  my 
holidays  towiitc  the  drama '*Stcrti  Realities, "and  inaboul  five  m< 
I  wrote  the  play  "  Trust.'*      Now,  I  have  been  trying  for  the 
cigiiteen  months  to  have  one  of  these  pieces  accepted,  but  all  myj 
endeavours  have  l>een  in  vain.     The  excuse  was  that  I  am  not 
<a  circumstance  which,  by-lhc-by,  happened  once  to  Shakespeare 
and  that  it  is  far  preferable  to  produce  the  works  of  authors 
known  to  the  public,  cvcu  if  their  in  ore  recent  efforts  have  pi 
a  failure  in  more  than  one  respect.     H  is  now  for  the  public  of 
great  country  to  decide  whether  this  arrangement  between  Mana^r 
Theatres  and  a  certain  small  clique  of  au;hors  is  a  monopoly  that 
go  on  for  ever ;  or  whether  it  is  only  a  false  and  preconceived  nc 
ou  the  part  of  the  former  regarding  the  want  of  good  taste  for 
productions  on  the  part  of  the  public.     Though  I  am  a  foreij 
consider  myself  as  one  of  the  public  who  has  endeavoured  to  amuMJ 
fellow- citizens,  but  to  wbom  no  opportunity  has  hitherto  beenafibi 
However,  as  the  author  of  a  collection  of  songs,  of  which  sotnei 
written  in  English,  French,  and  Gennan,  or  English  and  Genna 
simply  in  English  poetry,  and  which  volume  is  entitled  "  Honi  soitt 
mal  y  pense,"  and  was  collectively  dedicated  (o  the  Queen,  and  ac< 
by  her  Majesty,  containing  dedications  also,  by  special  commissi* 
ladies  of  the  highest  titles,  and  to  others  equally  exalted  in  attaii 
I  beg  you  to  believe  me,  when  I  assure  you,  on  the  word  of  i 
man,  auLlior,  and  schoolmaster,  that  the  two  pieces  I  have  written 
meet  with  your  approbation.     I  ajipcal  now  to  you,  ladies  and 
men,  to  assist  me  tn  bringing  out  one  of  the  two  pieces  ;  and,  ini 
humble  opinion,  the  most  effectual  way,  perhaps,  in  which  this  c< 
be  done,  would  be  in  addressing  rae  a  note,  kindly  informing  me 


CL'/c/ors  A.\j)  i:cc/:,\"J7:jc  .!/)r/\/V7/.^.A.w-:.\'/:s.  ;,.-;, 

of  the  two  pieces,  "Stern  Kcalhics "  cr  "'J'ru^t,"  should  in  your 
opinion  be  performed  first,  and  that  you  promise  you  will  come  to  see 
niher  or  both.  Receiving  thus  from  you  a  great  quantity  of  letters,  I 
Asll,  armed  with  such  a  phalanx  of  patronage,  present  myself  as  the 
hearer  of  the  popular  will  to  the  Mans^er  of  one  of  the  London 
'Theatres,  and — we  shall  see  I  A  letter  simply  addressed  thus,  "Dr. 
Vdlire,  Harrow,"  will  safely  reach  me.  Trusting  to  hear  from  you  at' 
Itmr  earliest  convenience,  I  remain,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  very  faith- 

E.  R.  W.  VELLERE. 

The  English  and  Continental  College, 
Harrow,  October  1st,  1869. 

Before  the  attention  directed  to  this  novelty  in  literature 
'tad  died  away,  another  similar  effusion  appeared,  and  for 
about  a  twelvemonth  the  Tim^s  contained  every  three  or 
.Amr  weeks  a  message  of  direful  import  from  Dr  Vellfere 
QQ  dramatic  monopoly  and  its  probable  ultimate  effect 
on  dramatic  literature  and  the  stage  generally,  varied  by 
leqnests  similar  to  those  given  here.  Iniquity  was  still 
triuniphant,  however,  and  the  patrons  of  the  legitimate 
toast  have  been  unwilling  to  interfere,  for  at  the  end  of  the 
year  Dr  Vellfcre  was  yet  unacted.  He  is  still  busy  writing 
plays,  for  he  believes  that  success  must  come  in  the  end  ; 
and  if  his  literary  ability  be  in  any  way  proportioned  to  his 
pertinacity,  the  chief  of  the  Elizabethan  roll  of  dramatists 
bas  at  last  met  a  worthy  rival.  Happily  there  is  a  way  out 
of  the  difficulty  with  which  Dr  Vell^re  and  his  friends  are 
encompassed.  Let  them  take  a  theatre,  engage  actors, 
and  play  each  other's  dramas  in  turn.  If  they  can  only 
agree  as  to  the  order  of  production,  and  the  relative  merits 
of  the  pieces,  they  are  sure  to  succeed  j  for  if  our  experience 
goes  for  anything,  the  unacted  and  unread  are  sufficiently 
numerous  to  support  any  house  of  moderate  pretensions. 
But  they  mustn't  all  want  to  be  put  on  the  free  list  That 
great  distinction  must  be  left  for  Dr  Vellbre  and  a  chosen 
few — composed,  say,  of  friendly  critics,  and  managers  dis- 
traught with  the  knowledge  that  priceless  gems  have  been 
discarded,  and  that  the  new  era  has  at  last  arrived. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


SWINDLES  AND  HOAXES, 


IT  is  of  course  only  natural  that  as  soon  as  advertist 
became  general,  that  portion  of  the  community  whi^ 
regards  the  other  portion  as  its  oyster,  was  not  slow  to 
cover   the  advantages  which   were  soon  to  accrue  in 
way  of  increased  facilities  for  publishing  new  dodges,  or' 
giving  extended  scope  to  those  whicli  were  old,  but  bad: 
far  attained  only  limited  circulation.     This  has  been  soc< 
clusively  shown  by  specimens  already  given,  and  rcferenc 
made,  that   there  is  no  necessity  to  discuss   the  quest 
anew,  and  therefore  we  will  at  once  plunge  into  the  thicltl 
those  advertisements  which  have  special  qualifications 
treatment  different  from  that  given  to  the  milder  classes] 
rogues  and  scoundrels.     The  first  transaction  which 
for  attention  is  in  connection  with  Queen  Anne*s  fa 
No  popular  delusion  has  perhaps  made  more  dupes 
that  relating  to  these  coins.     Innumerable  people 
that  there  never  were  but  three  farthings  of  this  desci 
two  of  which  have  found  their  way  in  due  course 
British  Museum,  the  third  only  being  still  abroad ; 
also  believed  that  the  Museum  authorities  would  give 
large  sum  for  the  possession  of  the  missing  token. 
there  are  no  less  than  six  distinct  varieties  of  Anne's 
known  to  exist,  and  specimens  of  them  are  not  at  al 
Some  of  them  may  be  procured  at  the  coin-dealers,  for 
or  twelve  shillings  ;  but  there  is  one  variety,  struck  in  17J 
which  is  extremely  rare,  and  would  bring  from  £^  to  £i 


SWINDLES  AND  HOAXES, 


305 


also  a  small  brass  medal  or  counter  of  Queen  Anne, 

e  size  of  a  farthing,  of  which  there  are  humlreils. 

once  procured  one  of  these,  and  placed  it  in 

ow,  ticketed  as  **  the  real  farthing  of  Queen  Anne." 

us  persons  came  from  far  and  near  10  view  this 

I  curiosity,  and  the  owner  turned  his  deception  to 

account. 

netime  about  the  first  quarter  of  this  century,  a  man 
land  received  twelve  months'  imprisonment  for  secret- 
Queen  Anne's  farthing.     He  was  shopman  to  a  con* 
Err  in  Dublin,  and  having  taken  the  farthing  over  the 
,  he  substituted  a  common  one  for  it.     Unfortunately 
I,  he  told  his  master  how  he  had  obtained  it,  and 
it  to  him  for  sale.     The  master  demanded  tl)e  Irca- 
ihis  property,  the  shopman  refused  to  give  it  up,  was 
t  into  the  Recorder's  Court,  and  there  received  tlie 
(entence.     When  rogues  fall  out,  honest  men  know 
tcy  have  lost.     It  is  wrong  to  assume  that  because 
quanel,  their  natural  enemies  **gct  their  own."     At 
Its,  experience  has  never  taught  us  so,  and  the  proverb, 
trally  read,  is  wrong. 
toerous  are  the  instances  of  people  having  travelled 
jistant  counties  to  London,  in  order  to  dispose  in  the 
orkct  of  the  supposed  valuable  farthing.     The  cu.s- 
of  the  medals  in  the  British  Museum  used  to  be  be- 
by  applicants  from  all  parts  of  the  country,  offering 
Anne's  farthings  and  imitations  of  them  for  sale, 
course  the  dealers  in  coin  even  now  receive  a  liberal 
f  the  same  annoyance.    Whence  the  treacherous  fable 
|ly  sprung  has  never  been  satisfactorily  explained, 
atain  that  Anne's  farthings  never  were  very  common, 
of  one  variety,  coined  in   1714,  not  less  than  from 
500  must  have  been  put  in  circulation.     But  the 
Were  mere  patterns,  and  were  never  struck  for  enr- 
oll of  them  were  coins  of  great  beauty,  and  for  this 
r  as  well  as  on  account  of  their  being  tlie  only  copper 


3d6  fflSTOR  Y  OF  AD  VER  TTSIXG, 

coins  struck  in  the  reign  of  Queen  Anne,  it  is  probable 
they  were  soon  hoarded  and  preserved  as  curiosities,  there-j 
by  acquiring  an    imaginary  value,  which   grew  rapidly 
soon  as  some  sharp  fellow  saw  how  useful  the  figment  might 
be  made.     But  the  immediate  cause  of  ihe  popular  fa) 
concerning  the  scarcity  and  great  value  may  be  found  ill' 
the  fact,  that  at  the  end  of  the  last  century  a  lady  of  Yorfcj 
shire  having  lost  one  of  these  coins,  offered  a  large  rewj 
for  it.     Probably  it  was  valuable  to  her  as  a  souvenir  of  soro< 
departed  friend  j  but  the  advertisement,  and  the  comparati> 
scarcity  of  these  farthings,  gradually  led  to  the  report  tl 
there  was  only  one  such    token  in    circulation,  and  thj 
the  unique  coin  was  of  course  of  almost  priceless  vah 
Long  before  this,  however,  advertisements  in  reference 
Anne's  farthings  had  found  their  way  into  the  papers, 
far  as  we  can  tliscover,  the  first  of  these  appeared  in 
General  Advfrtha-  of  April  19,  1745,  and  ran  as  follows 

■\T17HEREAS  ahout  seven  years  ago  an  Advertisement  vnu  publja 
*  *       in  some  of  the  Daily  Papers  offering  a  Reward  for  a  Qih 
Anne'a  Farthing  struct  in  the  year  1714. 

This  is  to  in/ifrm  tht  CURIODS 
That  a  Farthing  of  Oueen  Anne  of  that  year  of  a  very  beautiful  dj 
maybe  seen  at  the  Bnrof  the  I'cnsylvania  Coffeehouse  in  Birchin  1 
The  impression  is  no  ways  dcfiiced  but  as  entire  as  from  the  Mint. 

This,  probably,  just  at  the  time  when  a  furor  was  in 
ence  with  regard  to  the  farthings,  must  have  given  a 
to  the  business  at  the  Pennsylvania  Cofifee-house;  and 
have  done  a  great  deal  to  spread  the  belief  that  a  Qi 
Anne's  coin  was  much  more  desirable  than  the  wonderful 
lamp  of  Eastern  storj*,  or  the  more  modem  but  quite 
powerful  four-leaved  shamrock.     That  in  1802  the  fictic 
was  still  lively  is  shown  by  an  advertisement  which  appear 
in  the  February  of  that  year.     This  was  disguised  so  as 
appear  like  an  ordina^ry  paragraph  : — 

The  Queen  Anne's  farthing,  advertised  to  be  disposed  of  in 


SWINDLES  AND  JiOAXES, 


Mall,  proves  to  be  an  original.  There  were  only  two  coined  in  that 
Queen's  rciyn,  and  not  thre<  as  has  l>cen  erroneously  stated.  That 
which  was  sold  by  the  sergeant  from  Chatham  fur  ^400,  was  purchased 
by  a  noble  viscount,  curious  in  his  selection  of  coins,  &c.  Seven 
Hundred  guineas  was  the  price  asked  for  the  one  advertised  lost  week. 
Five  hundred  was  offered  for  it  and  refused.  The  owner  lives  at  Lynn, 
in  Norfolk.  The  ofTer  was  made  by  tiie  son  of  a  baronet,  who  wants 
to  complete  his  collection. 

Attention  and  credulity  were  30  excited  by  the  above  para- 
graph, and  many  others  of  the  same  tendency,  that  no  one 
thought  of  doubting  that  a  Queen  Anne's  fanhing  was  worth 
more  than  a  Jew's  eye  ;  nor  was  it  till  some  time  after  that 
the  whole  was  discovered  to  be  a  fabrication,  intended 
cither  to  impose  upon  the  crcdtility  of  the  public,  or,  what 
is  more  likely,  to  enhance  the  value  of  sucli  a  coin  to  the 
holder,  who  was  quietly  waiting  to  realise.  Whether  he  did 
so  or  not  does  not  appear,  but  it  is  more  than  likely  that 
he  did  not  allow  his  opportunity  to  slip,  but  hooked  one  of 
those  unconsciously  greedy  people  who  are  always  falling 
victitTis  to  their  own  selfishness  as  much  as  to  the  sharpers, 
and  who,  as  soon  as  they  are  deluded,  look  for  sympathy 
and  redress  to  those  very  laws  they  were  prepared  to  out- 
rage when  anything  was  apparently  to  be  got  by  so  doing. 
The  belief  that  Queen  Anne's  farthings  are  very  valuable 
still  obuins  among  the  vulgar,  notwithstanding  the  many 
times  its  absurdity  has  been  exposed;  and  there  is  no  par- 
ticular reason  for  imagining  that  it  will  become  at  all  ex- 
ploded until  some  fresher  but  quite  as  illogical  a  fiction  is 
ready  to  supply  its  place. 

One  of  the  most  notorious  swindlers  of  the  early  part  of 
the  present  century  was  Joseph  Ady,  who  used  to  profess 
that  he  knew  "something  to  your  advantage."  As  he  did 
not  deal  in  advertisements,  perhaps  he  has  no  right  here  ; 
but  as  about  1830  he  was  constantly  being  referred  to  in 
newspaper  paragraphs,  and  was  a  feature  of  the  time  among 
sharpers,  he  is  entitled  to  passing  notice,  if  only  as  a  news- 
paper celebrity.     At  the  period  we  mention,  "Ady  was  a 


Asyl 


mSrORY  OF  AVVEKTISING. 

decent-looking  elderly  man,  a  Quaker,  with  the  external  ^^ 
spectability  attached  to  the  condition  of  a  housekeeper,  and 
to  all  appearance  considered  himself  as  pursuing  a  perfectly 
legitimate  course  of  life.     His  mHifr  consisted  in  this.     He 
was  accustomed  to  examine,   so  far  as  the   means  were 
afforded  him,  lists  of  unclaimed  dividends,  estates  or  be-i 
quests  waiting  for  the  proper  ownerSi  and  unclaimed  pro- 
perty generally.    Noting  tlie  names,   he  sent  letters  loj 
individuals  beanng  the  same  appellatives,  stating  that,  on 
their  remitting  to  him  his  fee  of  a  guinea,  they  would  be 
informed  of  '  something   to  their  advantage/     When  any 
one  complied,  he  duly  sent  a  second  letter,  acquainting  hi 
that  in  such  a  list  was  a  sum  or  an  estate  due  to  a  per 
of  his  name,  and  on  which  he  might  have  claims  worth) 
of  being  investigated.     It  was  undeniable  that  the  infoi 
tion  misht  prove  to  the  advantage  of  Ady's  corrcspondenLl 
Between  Ibis  might  be  and  the  unconditional  promise 
something  to  the  advantage  of  the  correspondent,  lay  thf 
debatable  ground  on  which  it  might  be  argued  that  Adj 
was  practising   a   dishonest  business.     It  was  rather  t( 
narrow  a  margin  for  legal  purposes ;  and  so  Joseph  went 
from  year  to  year  reaping  tlie  guineas  of  the  unwary- 
dom  three  months  out  of  a  police  court  and  its  rep( 
till  his  name  became  a  byword  ;  and  still,  out  of  the 
tudes  whom  he  addressed,  finding  a  sufficient  number 
persons  ignorant  of  his  craft,  and  ready  to   be  inip< 
upon — and  these,  still  more  strange  to  say,  often  beloni 
to  the  well-educated  part  of  society."*     In  all  the 
cases  we  have  come  across,  in  which  Ady  was  concei 
he  seems  to  have  considerably  "sat  upon"  the  magisi 
the  "great  unpaid'*  of  the  City  being  quite  unable  to 
their  own  with  him.  notwithstanding  the  disadvantage 
which  Joseph  was  placed. 

The  claims  for  precedence  of  the  two  most  imi 


•  Book  of  Days. 


SWINDLES  AND  HOAXES, 


309 


ling  swindles  of  the  present  day  are  so  eqaally 
that  it  is  hard  to  say  which  has  caused  the  greater 
of  ruin  among  credulous  persons  who  have  invested 
[t  few  coins  in  the  hope  of  the  certain  success,  or  which 
irned  most  profit  to  the  exchequers  of  its  wily  pro- 
\.  The  two  claimants  are  the  Turf-Circular  and  the 
Employment  swindles,  both  of  which  have  been 
I  full  play.  We  will  give  the  "home-employment" 
tment  preference  of  treatment,  as  it  appeals  to  wider 
hies,  the  victims  being  mostly  credulous  only,  and 
fishly  and  idiotically  greedy  for  other  folk's  goods ; 
ling,  as  well,  mostly  poor  hard-working  women,  and 
few  children.  One  of  the  most  notorious  of  these 
lers  flourished  half-a-dozen  years  ago.  He  used  to 
ft  small  notice  in  the  daily  papers,  informing  those 
;d  leisure  that  he  could  find  ample  remunerative  em- 
XX  for  them,"  and  directing  applications  to  be  made 
RT  at  a  given  address,  enclosing  a  stamped  addressed 
>e.  Then  the  swindle  commenced,  the  reply  being 
ws: — 

Grove  House,  Tottenham  Road. 

IsuNGTON,  London,  N. 

ly  to  y;7ur  appiitati^n  as  fer  my  Notice  (Leisure  Time,  &*c,, 

Wy  respGilfulty  inform  you  tAat  it  has  ntnv  litceme  impossible  to 

}my  Adveriisemfiit  on  employing  leisure  time  fully  in  the  AVrcj- 

VfAich  the  little  abridged  fiotiie  appecired^  o^t/ing  to  the  enormous 

tmandeii for  iHserting  iff  namely  £1  ids.  for  each  time  it  appenri. 

61  eottsequence  I  am  eoptpelled,  reluctantly,  to  trouble  my  ccfrre* 

tofonvard  tkdr  mvtlopefor  the  purpose  ef  an  extended  explana- 

th  I  think  cannot  be  clearer  doiu  than  my  fcnvarding  in  pnnt^ 

\  a  copy  of  the  intefided  attnouncemeiit^  whieh  afier  reading,  anti 

fing  on  sending  for  the  paekd^  please  deduct  from  the  number 

tA^  three  Penny  Postage  Stamps  you  will  necessarily  have  used, 

enclose  {Jifteen)  tahich  triflmg  outlay  I  think  yeu^  like  others^ 

'  MO  eauie  ta  regret,         yeurs  faiihfuHy^ 

EVERETT  MAY, 

THE  UNDER  WILL  BEST  KXPLAIN  :— 


3»o 

Leisure  Time. 


mSTOKY  Of  ADVER72SfXG,  , 

—Four  Guineas  per  WtEK.— How  to  Rcauss 

THIS  AT  YOUR  UWN  HoMES, 


MR  EVERETT  MAV,  of  Kiugsland,  begs  to  apprise  the  Public 
ihftt  he  is  sending  off  as  rapidly  as  possible  by  every  post  hii 
far-fanied  Packet,  the  contents  of  which  will  show  the  many  plans  of 
getting  money  most  honourably  by  cither  sex  employing  leisure  boun 
at  their  own  homes.  £^Z  Xa£A  weekly  may  be  most  certainly  rcaUitd 
by  all  industrious  persons,  without  five  shillings  outlay  or  any  mk,  by 
following  the  easy,  respectable  and  clear  instructions.  Sent  by  Mr 
Everett  May,  of  Grove  House,  Tottenham-grove,  KingsUnd,  LcnfT^n. 
N.  This  is  no  visionary  theory.  The  Present  Season  highly -^, 
Enclose  eighteen  penny  stamps,  and  you  will  receive  post  frT>r 
Inally  per  return  THIS  PROVED  BOON  TO  THE  INDUS- 
TRIOUS OF  BOTH  SEXES. 

But  to  remove  any  doubt  that  sceptical  persons  may  entertain  as  lo 
the  truth  of  Ihc  abov^\  I  here  insert  the  under  six  letter*  received,  wiih 
hundreds  of  others.  The  parties  are  very  respectable  and  each  well- 
known  in  the  towns  they  reside. 

Calverton,  near  Nottingham. 

Dear  Sir, — I  beg  to  inform  you  that  your  packet  came  quite  safe,  and 
I  was  surprised  and  highly  pleased  with  its  contents.  LJkc  others  who 
doubled  the  truth,  I  was  ready  lo  conclude  it  was  only  to  catch  th«e 
foolish  enough  to  try  it.  But  1  have  now  proved  otherwise,  and  caa 
testify  that  you  are  no  other  tlian  a  true  and  faithful  man.  The  coo- 
tents  of  your  indeed  famed  packet  are  well  worth  twenty  times  as  mttchi 
and  whoever  the  party  may  be  receiving  it  will  have  no  cause  to  repeal. 
Yours  very  truly,  Setk  Bikcu. 

Another — Bpettisbury,  Blanford,  DorseL 
Dear  Sir, — I  beg  lo  inform  you  that  the  Packet  ordered  arrived 
safely,  and  allow  me  lo  tender  you  my  sincere  thanks  for  it.  Vonf 
plans  for  getting  money  so  honourably  are  indeed  excellent.  Anyone 
having  a  doubt  may  most  certainly  remove  such  doubt.  Hoping  jwi 
may  lonf;  continue  in  your  good  work  is  the  earnest  \mh  of  your  obe* 
dient  servant,  ^V.  OAKun". 

Then  follow  ihe  remaining  four  letters,  which  hav«  sn 
astonishing  family  likeness  to  the  two  chosen,  and  as  these 
six  were  only  inserted  to  show  what  the  careful  May  woulfi 
have  tione  had  he  been  able  to  launch  into  lavish  expendi- 
ture in  the  interests  of  his  clients,  he  gives  a  statement  after 
tlie  last  epistle  : — 


SWINDLES  AND  HOAXES. 


3" 


Suih  is  th£  txact  c^py  of  the  advertistmetit  I  inUndtd  to  have  placed 

he/ore  the  publu  by  inserting  in  the  Newspupo's  had  the  charge  not  6^m 

so  h/gA,  but  as  I  now  do  so  by  this  circular  I  can  ad*i  a  few  more  of  my 

cat  respondents*  a pptwal  letters^  in  furtherance  of  a  still  more  convincing 

\f9oof  of  the  vahu  of  this  esteemed  Money  Jtfahng  Packet. 

^KA.fter  this  he  gives  a  string  of  letters,  which  must  have 

^Ibianded  great  ingenuity  on  the  part  of  their  writer,  if  only 

^  on  account  of  the  number  of  signatures  he  must  have  in- 

j  vented.     Occasionally  he  breaks  down,  liowever,  and  has 

to  fiill  back  on  initials.     AVe  should  like  to  reproduce  a  lot 

of  these  expressions  of  gratitude  as  fomis  to  be  used  at  any 

time  when  thanks  are  required   for  any  great  benefit,  but 

space  will  not  allow  of  it,  and  we  must  be  content  with  two, 

which  are  redolent  of  truly  Christian  thankfulness : — 

Short  Heath  Road,  Erdington,  near  Birmingham,  December  I3tb,  1867. 
Mr.  May,  Dear  Sir, — I  have  received  your  Packet,  and  am  at  a  loss 
{tow.  adequately,  to  expre»  to  you  vliat  I  think  about  it— suffice  it  to 
say  that  I  consider  your  Packet  to  be  an  inestimable  boon  tu  ihc  unem- 
ployed of  every  class.  Tliousands  will,  doubtless,  make  money  by  it. 
It  professes  only  to  be  a  guide  to  the  employment  of  leisure  hours,  but 
in  reality  it  is  a  guide  to  the  employment  of  a  whole  life,  and  an  easy 
path  to  opulence.  "  Whoever  receives  it  will  have  no  cause  to  regret." 
*'  It  is  worth  twcnly  times  as  much."  **  Anyone  Iiaving  a  doubt  may 
most  certainly  remove  such  doubt,"  I  heartily  re-echo  these  testimo- 
nials, and  recommend  your  Packet  to  every  unemployed  person,  this  is 
no  more  than  I  am  in  equity  bound  to  do.  I  am,  Dear  Sir,  faithfully 
yours,  Thomas  Jonso.v,  Jitn, 

■^K  I,  Vincent  Terrace,  Frome.  October  5th,  1867. 

^Hpear  Sir,— I  luve  carefully  examined  the  contents  of  your  excellent 
I^Rcket,  and  am  astonished  and  delighted  with  tbem.  lie  or  she  would 
indeed  be  difficult  to  please  who  could  not  select  from  so  extensive 
ft  stock  some  profitable  employment  congenial  to  their  taste.  1'he 
instructions  are  explicit,  and  the  minute  details  in  each  cose  fully  and 
clearly  explained.  A  person  of  moderate  industry  and  perseverance, 
furnished  with  yotir  Packet  may  attain,  if  not  a  furlune,  at  least  a  very 
comfortable  living.  It  ought  to  be  widely  known,  and  I  for  my  part 
•hall  not  fail  to  recommend  it.  I  admit  I  answered  youradvcrliiemciit 
merely  from  a  curious  desire  to  know  what  was  the  latest  dodge  (pardon 
the  word)  for  hoaxing  the  public,  and  I  am  miw  heartily  glad  I  did 
answer  it,  though  a^<«hamcd  of  the  motive  that  induced  me  to  do  so.  I 
am,  I>car  Sir,  faithfully  yours  Joseph  Johssox,  Schoolmaster. 


^ 


31a  mSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 

The  poor  guUs,  after  reading  these  effusions,  which 
play  on  the  same  strings  of  wonder,  salisfaciion,  ajid  grati* 
lude,  are  of  course  anxious  to  participate  in  the  benefit 
of  lucrative  emplo>Tnent,  and  off  go  the  stamps.  If  th( 
mischief  ended  there,  the  matter  would  not  be  so  bad;  bul 
tliese  a<lvertising  scoundrels  have  various  courses  open  U 
them!  If  they  judge  that  nothing  more  is  to  be  obtain* 
from  the  sender,  they  calmly  pocket  the  stamps  and  take 
no  further  notice.  In  the  event  of  continued  "annoyance," 
or  threats  of  exposure,  they  will  send  forth  a  circular  which 
states  that  a  packet  was  posted,  and  must  have  been  lost  or 
stolen  in  transit.  This  circular  speaks  of  the  post-office, 
and  other  institutions,  in  the  most  disparaging  manner,  and 
of  the  transactions  of  its  writers  as  not  only  just,  but  infalli- 
ble.    One  of  them  winds  up  thus : — 

Another  matter  /  -wish  to  inform  you  upon,  nattuly^  on  ai'or  frn'oUs 
r/gardisiff  the  punctual  and  prompt  eomievijnce  o/Ptukels  fy  /Ar  Past 
Office.  This  is  ai  times  impossihte.  If  the  letter  mails  are  heazy,  PacJtds 
are  sometimes  left  until  the  ftflUnuing  day.  So  that  I  cannot  guamntir  ii 
wiil  be  delivered  at  your  residence  by  return^  but  you  may  fully  espa't  U 
fy  the  second  if  not  by  the  first  mail^  postage  free,  well  packed,  and  secure 
from  ohseii'ation.  These  remarks  may  appear  triflings  but  they  are 
really  neeessar)',  and  while  on  the  suli/cct  I  will  name  a  not  her ^  alsfof 
importance^  it  is  this — several  of  my  correspondents  when  applying  for 
these  particulars  send  only  their  natm  and  address  on  a  stamped  envelope 
and  when  ordering  the  Packet  enclose  their  name  and  omit  the  addt^ss^ 
and  this  not  beitij;  retained  by  me  renders  it  impossible  to  forward  ii,  Sa 
thai  a  distinct  name  and  address  it,  in  the  second  instance,  ahsolutdy 
fucessary.  It  is  required  for  no  ether  obfect  than  to  cnaHe  me  to  promptly 
fonviird  the  order^  which  I  can  do  to  any  address  in  the  Unked  Kin^om^ 

The  correspondent  who  dates  from  a  good  address,  or 
whose  letter  looks  promising,  is  likely  to  be  despoiled  still 
more.  The  stamps  are  acknowledged,  and  at  the  same 
time  information  is  tendered  that  a  special  order  for  the 
peculiar  fancy  goods  upon  which  the  income  is  to  be  made 
has  just  come  in  ;  and  that  if  the  intending  employee  will 
send  a  fee,  say  five  shillings,  for  registration,  and  a  deposit, 
say  five   pounds,  for  security,  she  will  receive  a  pa 


Siy/yDLES  AND  I/OAXES, 

'containing  the  work — which  is  very  easy — and  ample  in- 
sOructions.  A  little  delay  enables  these  wandering  tribes 
,to  change  both  names  and  addresses,  and  to  appear  in 
greater  force  than  ever  in  the  advertisement  columns.  No 
wonder  the  writers  we  have  quoted  show  such  gratitude  for 
the  receipt  of  promised  parcels  1  But  we  did  know  two 
real  people  who  got  what  they  bargained  for.  One,  who 
only  paid  the  cightecnpence,  obtained,  after  a  good  long 
time,  and  the  expenditure  of  many  threats,  some  scraps  of 
brown  paper,  which  were  said  to  be  patterns  for  pen-wipers, 
"  the  manufacture  of  which  would  be  found  to  yield  a 
lucrative  profit,  if  a  market  could  be  found  for  them.** 
There  is  much  virtue  in  an  if  in  this  case.  The  paper 
went  on  to  say  that  there  were  many  shopkeepers  who 
would  be  glad  to  sell  them  on  conimissicm,  "  the  article 
being  extremely  rare."  It  is  noticeable  tliat  the  circular 
received  on  this  occasion  was  printed,  with  blanks  left  for 
description  of  the  patterns  and  the  name  of  the  work  for 
which  they  were  to  be  used.  A  man  of  imaginative  mind 
might  in  the  course  of  the  day  have  run  through  a  con- 
siderable list  of  trades  ;  and  as  the  reference  to  the  demand 
for  the  article  and  the  sales  by  commission  would  be  the 
same  in  all  the  notices,  the  demand  upon  truth  was  evi- 
dently not  particularly  excessive.  The  other  successful 
applicant  was  a  lady  who  began  by  wTiting  out  of  mere 
curiosity,  and  who  gradually  got  on  until  she  had  parted  with 
not  much  less  than  ten  pounds.  A  sharp  letter  from  a 
solicitor  brought  no  answer  to  him,  but  succeeded  in  send- 
ing the  long-expected  parcel  to  his  client.  It  was  heavy, 
and  accompanied  by  a  short  letter,  which  said  : — 

Birmingham,  October?,  1869. 
Madam, 

*\Yc  beg  to  infomti  you  that  some  little  delay  has  been 
caused  by  the  failure  of  a  company  to  whom  we  entrusted  the  mami* 
facture  of  a  large  quantity  of  articles.  We  have  now  however  great 
pleasure  in  forwaniing  you  a  sample  of  an  enamelled  leather  child's 
button  boot,  with  la&ts  and  leather  for  you  lo  follow  model.    As  soon 


3»4 


IJISrORY  OF  ADVEKTISrXC, 


u  we  receive  from  yoa  specimen  equal  to  pattern  we  shall  be  glad 
afford  you  conat&nt  cinploymeiit. 

Vouts  obediently, 

VENTNOR  AND  MORRIS. 

The  parcel  contained  some  old  odd  lasts,  a  really  wel 
made  little  boot,  and  some  queer  bits  of  leather,  which  tl 
cleverest, man  in  the  world  could  have  done  nothing  with] 
a  shoemaker's  knife,  an  awl,  and  a  lump  of  cobbler's  wax! 
This  expedient  enabled  the  swindlers  to  tide  over  the  time 
till  a  new  name  and  a  fresh  address  were  decided  on.  It 
is  worthy  of  note — and  we  shall  refer  to  it  a  little  further 
or. — that  the  statement  of  one  of  these  scoundrels  would 
lead  to  the  impression  that  extra  prices  are  charged  for 
these  swindling  advertisements.  If  larger  prices  arc  charged 
10  men  because  their  advertisements  are  fraudulent,  no 
amount  of  false  logic  or  forensic  oratory  can  dispose  of 
the  fact  that  the  proprietors  of  the  papers  are  accessories 
in  any  robbery  or  swindle  that  is  committed ;  and  the 
insertion  of  such  advertisements,  knowing  them  to  be  traps 
for  the  unwary^  at  a  price  which  denotes  the  guilty  know- 
ledge of  the  proprietors,  is  as  gross  a  breach  of  the  trust 
reposed  in  them  by  the  public  as  was  ever  committed  by 
smug,  well-fed,  Sabbath-observing  sinners.  There  is,  un- 
fortunately, but  too  much  reason  to  believe  that  extra  prices 
are  ch.irged  for  these  fool-traps,  and  that  in  the  most  pious 
and  pretentious  papers.  At  the  time  of  the  baby-farnnng 
disclosures  which  led  to  the  execution  of  Margaret  AVaters, 
one  paper  openly  accused  another — a  daily  of  large  circu- 
lation— with  chargingVhree  or  four  hundred  per  cent,  over 
the  ordinary  tarifif  pricXfor  the  short  applications  for  nurse 
children  which  were  thJtfi  usual  Perhaps  the  accusation 
was  not  worth  disproval-V-ai  all  events  it  remains  uncon- 
tradicted till  this  day,  IThese  murderous  advertisements 
presented  no  particularly  Idestructive  features,  they  simply 
said  in  each  case  that  \  tmrsc  child  was  wanted  at  a 
certain  address  :  and  sometinies 


SIVTNDLES  AXD  HOAXES. 


3»5 


ike  a  baby  altogether  for  a  lump  sum. 
»t  taken  from  a  leading  daily  paper  : — 


This  is  one  of  a 


\DOPTION.— Child  WoHtcd  to  NURSE,  or  can  be  LEFT  AL- 
*-    TOGETHER.    Terms  motleralc.    Can  be  taken  from  birth. 


r 


>iueiimes  the  terras  were  mentioned,  and,  as  a  rule,  the 
im  named  showed  that  even  the  tender  mercies  experi- 
iced  by  Oliver  Twist  and  his  friend  Dick  at  the  farming 
itablishmcnt  inhabited  by  them  could  hardly  have  been 
cpected  by  the  most  confiding  of  parents.     Thus  :— 

\  RESPECTABLE  Woman  wishes  to  adopt  a  CHILD.  Pre- 
J^  mium  £6.  Will  be  uken  altogether  and  no  further  trouble 
Ktoiy.     Apply . 

^k  some  of  these  establishments  may  be  still  in  existence, 
ff"cfrain  from  republishing  the  addresses.  These  speci- 
icns,  as  advertisements,  simply  call  for  no  comment  at  our 
irds,  and  so  we  will  get  on  with  the  more  pronounced, 
lough  less  guilty,  swindlers.  Here  is  a  specimen  which 
Qubttess  gave  the  postman  some  extra  work  : — 

^ENTLEMEX  having  a  respectable  circle  of  acquaintance  may 
J  hear  of  means  of  INCREASING  their  INCOME  without  the 
ightest  pecuniary  risk,  or  of  having  (by  any  chance)  their  feelings 

Rded.     Apply  for  parltculan  by  letter,  staling  their  position  &c 
y  R-  37i  W Street  C Square. 

To  such  an  advertisement  as  this — one  of  exactly  the 
ime  kidney — wliich  appeared  in  UoycTs^  under  the  head  of 
How  to  make  Two  pounds  per  Week  by  the  outlay  of 
'en  Shillings,"  and  asking  for  tliirty  stamps  in  return  for 
le  information,  the  following  belongs.  It  is  sent  in  reply 
%  the  letter  enclosing  ilie  fee,  and  is  too  good  a  specimen 
f  the  humour  possessed  by  these  rogues  to  be  passed 
Iter:— 

'*  First  purchase  i  cwt,  of  large-sized  potatoes  which  may 
t  obuined  for  the  sum  of  ^s.,  then  purchase  a  large  basket, 


3»6 


HISTORY  OF  ADVEKTfSTNG. 


which  will  cost  say  anotlier  4s.,  then  buy  as,  worth  of  flanm 
blanketting  and  this  will  comprise  your  stock  in  trade, 
which  the  total  cost  is  los.     A  large-sized  potato  weigt 
about  half-a-pound,  consequently  there  are   224  potatoe 
in  a  cwt.     Take  half  the  above  quantity  of  potatoes  each' 
evening  to  a  baker's  and  have  them  baked;  when  properly 
cooked  put  them  in  your  basket,  well  wrapped  up  in  th( 
flannel  to  keep  them  hot,  and  sally  forth  and  offer  them  fofJ 
sale  at  one  penny  each.     Numbers  will  be  glad  to  purchase 
them  at  that  price,  and  you  will  for  certain  be  able  to  sell 
half  a  cwt.  every  evening.    From  the  calculation  made  below 
you  will  see  by  that  means  you  will  be  able  to  earn  ^2  p< 
week.      The  best  plan  is  to  frequent  the  most  crowd* 
ihorough fares,  and  make  good  use  of  your  lungs,  thus  lettii 
people  know  what  you  have  for  sale.     You  could  also 
in  at  each  public-house  on  your  way  and  solicit  the  patroi 
age  of  the  cvistomers,  many  of  whom  would  be  certain 
buy  of  you.     Should  you  have  too  much  pride  to  transac 
the  business  yourself  (though  no  one  need  be  ashamed 
pursuing  an  honest  caUing),  you  could  hire  a  boy  for  a  fe 
shillings  a  week  who  could  do  the  work  for  you,  and  y( 
could  still  make  a  handsome  profit  weekly.     The  followii 
calculation  proves  that  J^2  per  week  can  be  made  by  sellinj 
baked  potatoes : — 

**  I  cwt.  containing  224  potatoes  sold  in  ^yto  evenings  at 


id,  each, 

Deduct  cost, 

Six  evenings'  Svile, 
Pay  baker  at  the  rate  of  Sd.  per  evening 
for  baking  potatoes, 

Nett  profit  per  week, 

0 

iS 

4 

% 
0 

£0 

M 

8 

5 

2 
0 

4 
4 

1 

£^ 

0 

J 

SWINDLES  AND  HOAXES. 


3"7 


iy  and  most  curious  are  the  answers  received  from 
D  time  by  persons  with  sufficient  faith  to  make  appli- 
to  these  advertisers,  the  foregoing  being  by  no  means 
:.  One  reply  received  in  return  for  half-a-crown's 
of  stamps,  which  were  to  have  purchased  much  wisdom 
way  of  money-saving,  was  this  :  "  Never  pay  a  boy  to 
fter  your  shadow  while  you  ciimb  a  tree  to  see  into 
iddle  of  next  week."  A  man  who  would  send  his 
'  to  such  evident  scamps,  could  hardly  see  into  the 
!  of  anything,  no  matter  where  he  chose  his  vantage- 
i.  Fortunately  for  the  interests  of  the  community  at 
these  tricksters  now  and  again  are  made  to  feel  that 
s  justice  in  the  land.  Twenty  years  ago,  a  City  magis- 
[id  good  service  by  exposing  a  man  who  lived  abroad 
endour  at  the  expense  of  the  poor  governesses  he 
;ed  to  victimise  through  the  advertising  columns  of 
ma.  This  rascal  used,  by  means  of  the  most  specious 
ies,  to  drag  young  girls  to  a  foreign  land,  and  there 
them  to  become  a  prey  to  other  villains,  or  to  make 
way  back  accordingly  as  circumstances  permitted. 
Bt  the  present  lime  there  are  streams  of  foreign  girls 
•d  to  London  under  all  sorts  of  pretexts  for  the  vilest 
ies,  the  least  said  as  to  the  criminality  of  one  single 
iual  among  the  shoals  of  scoundrels  who  live  by 
of  advertisements  the  better.  Since  Mr  Fynn  was 
ked  many  other  hawks  have  been  captured,  and  only 
ly  two  have  found  their  way  into  the  obscurity  of  penal 
tde  under  circumstances  worthy  of  mention.  Fiace 
wi€s:  we  will  give  precedence  to  Mistress  Margaret 
J^ellair,  though  her  retirement  was  subsequent  to  that 
pther  claimant  on  our  attention.  The  difference  of 
s,  however,  extremely  small.  Mrs  Dellair  lived  at 
on,  and  for  a  long  lime  lived  in  peace  and  plenty 
:  post-office  orders,  or  rather  the  cash  received  in 
ige  for  them,  obtained  by  means  of  the  following 
isement : — 


3^5 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


HOME  EMPLOY^^E^*T.— Ladies  in  ton-n  or  country  wUhinjr  for 
Remuneraiive  EMPLOYMENT  in  Laces,  Church  Needlework. 
&C.,  sliouIJ.  apply  at  once  to  M.  D.,  Fern  House,  West  Croydon,  en- 
closing a  directed  envelope.     Rcfcreucc  to  ladies  employed  by  p«^ 


This  must  have  been  a  fruitful  source  of  income 
M.  D.,  who  seems  to  have  considered  that  people  w< 
calmly  content  to  part  with  their  money,  as  she  made 
attempt  to  put  off  the  day  of  reckoning  which  was  bound 
arrive.  So  in  due  course  Mrs  Dellair  found  herself  charg< 
with  fraud  before  the  Croydon  bench,  and  ultimately  si 
appeared  at  the  bar  of  the  Central  Criminal  Court  in  Apr 
of  the  present  year.  Her  mode  of  procedure,  described 
during  the  trial,  was  this.  Applicants  in  due  time,  after 
sending  in  tlieir  stamped  and  addressed  envelopes,  received 
circulars,  staling  that  ihe  work  which  the  sender  was  able  to 
furnish  comprised  braiding,  point  lace,  tatting,  church  needle- 
work, and  Berlin  wool.  The  needlework  was  to  be  done 
at  the  ladies'  homes,  and  they  were  never  to  earn  less  than 
eightpence  or  a  shilling  per  hour.  To  secure  employment 
the  applicants  were  informed  that  the  payment  of  one 
guinea  '*for  registration  fee,  materials,  and  instruction," 
was  required,  half  of  which  sum  was  to  be  returned  when 
the  employment  was  resigned.  Post-office  orders  were  to 
be  made  payable  at  the  office,  Windmill  Street,  Croydon,  to 
Margaret  Dellair.  "  There  is,"  says  a  writer  at  the  time 
commenting  on  this  case,  **  something  quite  admirable  in 
this  calm  repudiation  of  the  anonymous,  in  this  wearin"  of 
the  heart  upon  the  sleeve,  on  the  part  of  Mistress  Dellair. 
The  bait  she  threw  out  was  swallowed  with  avidity  by  many 
young  ladies  —  some  with  more  money  than  wit,  others 
painfully  anxious  to  secure  bread-winning  employment; 
others  less  solicitous  about  procuring  work  for  themselves 
than  inquisitive  to  discover,  for  the  benefit  of  society  in 
general  and  their  friends  in  particular,  whether  the  transac- 
tion was  bonhfide.     Then  the  curtain  rose  on  the  second 


SlVIXDlESAyD  HOAXES, 

of  tlie  drama.  Some  ladies  sent  post-office  orders  to 
ndmill  Road ;  others  took  the  train  to  Croydon,  and  had 
sonal  interviews  with  the  benevolent  recluse  of  Fern 
luse— a  little  cottage  near  a  wood — who  did  not  fail  to 
resent  that  she  was  extensively  employed  by  some  emi- 
it  firms  of  church  furnishers  in  the  metropolis."  One 
ing  lady  having  sent  her  guinea,  received,  after  a  lapse 
some  weeks,  and  after  repeated  communications  on  her 
't,  ten  loilet-raats,  with  the  materials  for  braiding  them. 
ere  was  not  enough  braiding,  j^nd  so  she  wrote  for  more, 
C  received  no  reply.  Then  she  finished  the  mats  with 
tcrials  purchased  by  herself,  and  despatched  the  articles 
Croydon ;  but  neither  reply  nor  payment  was  forthcom- 
;.  After  many  more  weeks  Mrs  Dellair  wrote  to  say  that 
;  was  in  ill-health.  Seeing,  however,  that  the  advertise- 
nt  was  continued  in  the  papers,  the  defrauded  young 
,y  wrote  to  Fern  Cottage,  demn.nding  the  return  of  ten 
llings,  being  one-half  of  the  sum  she  had  disbursed  for 
cgistration  fee,  materials,  and  instruction."  No  answer 
s  returned,  of  course;  and  the  victim  not  only  lost  her 
mcy,  but  her  time  and  her  labour,  to  say  nothing  of  post- 
;,  worry  of  mind,  and  other  incidental  expenses.  One 
the  principal  witnesses  against  Dellair  was  the  Croydon 
5tmaster,  who  stated  that  he  had  known  her  a  year  and 
lalf.  She  had  been  in  the  habit  of  bringing  post-office 
Jcrs  to  his  office  to  cash.  She  had  brought  between 
•ee  and  four  hundred  orders  since  July  1872,  principally 
'  guineas,  but  there  were  some  for  half-crowns  and  some 
^  half-guineas.  They  were  brought  principally  by  her 
ughter,  but  sometimes  by  a  servant  On  the  30th  of 
:tober  1873  a  post-office  order  (produced)  was  brought 
him,  and  the  payee's  signature  was  that  of  the  prisoner. 
5  paid  the  money  to  the  person  who  brought  it  The  hovise 
which  the  prisoner  lived  was  a  small  private  house,  called 
rn  Cottage,  and  there  was  no  show  of  business  kept 
cross-examination  by  prisoner's  counsel,  the 


320 


IIJiiTORY  OF  ABVERTJSJNC, 


postmaster  stated  that  the  fact  of  so  many  orders  b< 
cashed  by  Mrs  Dellair  excited  his  suspicion.  He,  howe 
knew  that  she  was  getting  her  living  by  sending  parcels 
needlework  by  post,  and  since  he  had  ascertained  that 
he  did  not  think  it  so  extraordinary.  Mrs  Dellair  was  ia 
the  habit  of  purchasing  postage  stamps  in  large  quanti- 
ties of  him.  She  sometimes  purchased  ten  shillings' 
worth,  and  once  or  twice  had  bought  them  to  a  larger 
extent  At  the  trial  the  entire  seat  in  front  of  the  jur>'-box 
was  filled  by  young  women  who  attended  to  prosecute,  some 
of  whom  had  been  prudent  enough  to  ask  for  references, 
but  imprudent  enough  to  part  with  their  guineas,  although 
Ihe  testimonials  received  were  not  quite  satisfactory.  Some 
applicants  had  intcr\'iews  with  Dellair  at  Croydon,  and  then 
she  gave  the  names  of  one  or  two  eminent  firms  as  hei 
employers,  but  at  the  trial  representatives  of  these  firms 
swore  that  she  was  totally  unknown  to  them.  One  of  the 
most  peculiar  points  in  this  trial  was  the  line  taken  by 
the  counsel  for  the  defence,  who  argued  that  although 
the  victims  of  his  client  might  be  deserving  of  sympathy, 
they  had  parted  with  iheir  guineas  in  a  foolish  and  care- 
less manner,  and  the  real  question  was  whether  the  accused 
was  guilty  of  a  fraudulent  pretence  or  not.  The  advocate 
raised  the  curious  point  in  favour  of  his  client,  that  although' 
she  had  avowedly  four  hundreil  transactions  with  diffcrt'nt 
persons,  it  was  extraordinary  that  she  had  not  been  uis- 
covcred  and  prosecuted  before ;  but  he  forgot  how  much 
more  extraor<linary  it  was  that  for  her  defence  tlie  prisoner 
was  unable  to  bring  forward  out  of  her  four  hundred  clientfi 
a  single  witness  who  could  swear  to  receiving  remunerative' 
employment  from  her.  The  defence  was  original,  and 
ginality  in  defence  has  a  good  deal  to  do  with  success  wh 
a  case  is  being  tried  by  a  common  jury ;  but  it  did  not  s 
ceed,  and  Mrs  Margaret  Annie  Dellair  was  found  guil 
The  woman  was  an  impudent  and  abandoned  swindler, 
'  been  systematically  preying  for  years  upon  a  class 


SWINDLES  AND  HOAXES, 


321 


can,  of  all  classes,  the  least  afford  to  be  cheated — decently- 
educated  young  women  of  small  means,  who  fill  respectable 
positions,  and  whose  consequent  need  of  employment  which 
will  enable  them  to  earn  a  little  something  above  their 
ordinary  salaries  is  always  pressing  and  frequently  impera- 
tive. Before  sentence  M'as  passed  an  inspector  from  Scot- 
land Yard  stated  that  the  prisoner  and  her  husband  had 
formerly  lived  at  Finchley  under  another  name;  that  they 
had  afterwards  kept  a  shop  in  Bloomsbury  under  the  title 
of "  Fuller  &  Co.,"  where  they  advertised  to  give  "remu- 
nerative employment"  both  to  young  ladies  and  young 
gentlemen;  that  in  May  1S72  the  husband  was  sentenced 
at  the  ^[idcilesex  Sessions  to  five  years'  imprisonment  for 
fraud ;  that  on  his  conviction  the  woman  removed  to 
Fem  Cottage ;  and  that  after  her  arrest,  and  its  consequent 
publication  in  the  papers,  upwards  of  eighty  letters  had 
been  received  by  the  police  coniplaining  of  her  dealings. 
All  that  Margaret  Annie  Dellair  could  do  when  she  was 
called  up  for  sentence  was  to  plead  that  she  had  been  left 
in  an  all  but  penniless  condition  with  seven  young  children ; 
that  she  had  tried  in  vain  to  obtain  an  honest  livelihood 
by  keeping  a  stall  in  a  bazaar  j  and  that  her  crime  was 
caused  by  a  desire  to  avert  starvation  from  her  innocent  off- 
Bpring.  A  good  deal  of  sympathy  was  of  course  expressed 
fcy  the  public — especially  by  those  who  have  nothing  to 
bse — not  for  the  victims,  but  for  the  viclimiser.  The  in- 
terest taken  in  criminals  nowadays,  when  they  have  the 
slightest  claims  to  be  out  of  the  common  order,  would  be 
regarded  as  quite  overdrawn  if  described  in  a  novel. 

The  other  delinquent  was  not  so  interesting,  and  being 
:>nly  a  man,  did  not  find  any  hearts  to  bleed  for  him  even 
tmong  those  who  had  not  been  deceived.     His  practices 

ere  provincial,  his  advertisement,  of  which  the  following 
a  copy,  being  inserted  in  the  Warwickshire  and  I^ndon 

apcrs : — 


3" 


J/JSTORY  OF  ADVERTISIKG, 


HOME    EMPLOYMENT.— Ladies  (several)  wanted  lo    COPY 
Daanuscnpt  SERMONS  for  supply  to  the  clergy.     ReisoD 
terms.    Apply  by  letter  only  lo  K.  XL,  39,  New-buildings,  Coventry. 

R,  H.  was  Robert  Hemmings,  who  was  eventually  tri< 
at  the  Wanvick  Assizes  of  last  March,  and  whose  mc 
operandi  was  then  described.     Several  young  ladies  secil 
the  advertisements,  and  wishing  for  employment,  wrote 
the  address  given,  in  answer  to  which  they  received 
"Prospectus  of  the  Private  Office  for  the  Supply  of  Sermoi 
and  Lectures  to  Clergymen  and  Public  Speakers."     In  this' 
highly-titled  and  pretentious  document,   clergymen   "  who_ 
find  the  composition  of  sermons  loo  heavy  a  tax  on  th( 
ingenuity,  are  invited  to  subscribe  for  manuscript  sermoi 
arranged  according  to  the  three  schools  of  thought  in 
Englit  1  Church.     The  High  Church  section  is  subdivide 
into  i-ituaiistic  and  moderate  Anglican.     The  subscriptic 
for  three  sermons  weekly  is  four  guineas  per  annum, 
able  in  advance.     The  same  sermon  will  not  be  sent  to 
two  clergymen  within  twenty  miles  of  each  other."     It 
states,  that  the  business  of  the  ofhce  rendering  neces 
the  employment  of  copyists,  it  has  been  decided  to  emj 
ladies   only,  the   reason   being   that  home  occupation 
gentlcivomcn  of  limited  income  is  such  a  great  dcsiderat 
of  our  limes.     Then  it  goes  on  to  say  that  "  the  ordii 
avenues  for  respectable  women  desiring  lo  replenish  tlli 
scanty  purses  are  so  overstocked  that  tlie  limited  numi 
we  are  able  to  employ  will  gladly  welcome  the  opportunity 
of  turning  a  fair  handwriting  to  a  profitable  account     The 
remuneration  paid  will  be  ad.  per  loo  words.     To  avoid 
the  possibility  of  unscrupulous  persons  obtaining  valuj 
sermons  on  pretence  of  copying,  a  guarantee  of  los.  will 
required  from  each  copyist  before  MSS.  are  sent,  to  be 
turned  when  she  may  discontinue  working.     Applicants 
employment  should  enclose  2s.   6d.  on  account  of  th( 
deposit,  which  will  either  be  returned  or  a  nouficaiion 
engagement  sent.     In  the  latter  case  the  balance  must 


SWINDLES  AND  IIOAX£X 


3*3 


be  remitted,  in  order  that  the  first  parcel  may  be  supplied 
All  communications  to  be  sent  to  Mr  Robert  Hemmings, 
39,  New-buildings,  Coventry."  One  young  lady  resident 
in  London,  who  gave  evidence,  sent  the  half-cro^vn,  and 
then  received  a  letter  stating  that  she  would  be  employed 
on  fonv^arding  a  post-office  order  to  Birmingiiam  for  75.  6d. 
She  did  not  do  so,  but  many  other  ladies  were  not  so  wise. 
The  prisoner  having  obtained  the  money,  ceased  to  com- 
municate with  the  applicants.  The  jury  found  the  prisoner 
guilty,  and  the  judge  sentenced  him  to  twelve  months'  im- 
prisonment with  hard  labour, 

A  more  fortunate  rogue  was  one  who  came  into  notice  at 
the  Sussex  Assizes  four  or  five  years  back.  Justice  may  or 
may  not  have  overtaken  him  since,  for  these  fellows  have 
so  many  and  such  various  aliases  that  unless  you  :liappen 
to  sec  one  tried  and  hear  him  sentenced,  there  is  no  .»ay  of 
telling  who  he  is  or  what  he  may  have  been.  Ihe  object  of 
our  care  at  the  present  moment  was  known  at  Bognor  in 
Sussex  as  Henry  Waikis,  though  as  he  admitted  to  one  more 
name,  the  suggestive  one  of  Walker,  even  there,  it  would 
be  difficult  to  say  what  might  be  his  name  in  London  or 
any  other  large  town.  He  used  to  advertise  to  procure 
situations  in  London  daily  and  weekly  papers,  and  some 
complaints  having  been  made  to  the  police,  he  was  taken 
into  custody  on  a  warrant,  and  appeared  at  the  Chichester 
Quarter  Sessions.  From  a  newspaper  report  of  the  time 
wc  take  some  of  the  ftjllowing  particulars  of  what  must  be 
considered  a  decided  miscarriage  of  justice. 

Waikis  Hvcd  at  6  Jessamine  Cottages,  Bognor,  and  when 
ihc  superintendent  of  police  from  Chichester  searched  his 
cottage,  he  found  under  the  stairs  530  letters,  consisting  of 
tcslimonials,  replies  to,  and  drafts  of  advt^rtisements ;  and 
in  another  part  of  the  house  he  found  about  150  envelopes, 
apparently  sent  for  replies,  from  which  stamps  had  been 
cut.  When  Waikis  was  apprehended,  he  acknowledged  that 
be  was  the  person  who  had  been  advertising  in  the  name  of 


314 


IfiSTOR  Y  OF  ADVERTISING, 


"  B.  C,  Post-office,  Chichester,"  by  which  it  seems  thai  he 
had  still  another  alias,  though  not  in  Bognor.  On  that 
day  he  sent  a  lad  to  the  Chichester  post-office,  and  a  large 
bundle  of  letters,  addressed  as  above,  was  brought  back 
from  the  office.  In  the  course  of  a  few  days  after  Waikis's 
apprehension,  between  seven  and  eight  hundred  letters 
were  receiver!  at  the  post-office  all  directed  in  the  sime 
way.  Evidence  was  given  that  advertisements  were  in- 
serted in  the  Daily  Tcl^aph  and  Lloyd's  in  consequence  of 
orders  received  in  letters  signed  *'  Hy.  Watkis,"  and  *'  Hy. 
Walker."  About  500  letters  were  received  at  Chichester, 
addressed  " X.  Y.  Z"  in  accordance  with  one  of  the  adver- 
tisements, and  a  very  large  number  were  also  received  at 
Erasworth  under  still  a  fresh  set  of  initials.  Altogether 
nearly  20,000  letters  are  supposed  to  have  been  sent  to  the 
two  offices  for  the  accused.  It  was  proved  that  34s.  worth 
of  stamps,  all  singles,  had  been  sold  by  Watkis.  At  the 
conclusion  of  the  address  for  the  prosecution,  the  deputy 
recorder  ruled  that  there  was  no  case  to  go  to  the  jury  as 
far  as  the  law  was  concerned.  There  was  no  proof  that 
Waikis  had,  either  on  his  own  part  or  on  that  of  others, 
no  such  situations  to  offer  as  had  been  advertised.  The 
jury  were  not  satisfied  without  hearing  the  evidence  that 
the  prisoner  was  not  guilty.  The  deputy  recorder  said  they 
had  p'aced  him  in  a  very  difficult  position,  and  he  must 
tell  themag.iin  that  the  indictment  could  not  be  maintained 
in  point  of  law.  Therefore  they  would  be  doing  a  vcnr 
irregular  thing  to  go  into  the  case.  It  was  for  them  to  find 
a  verdict  in  accordance  with  the  ruling  of  the  court  on  the 
point  of  law.  After  some  discussion  the  jury  returned  into 
court,  and  ihc  foreman,  in  answer  to  the  usual  question, 
said,  *'  If  we  are  obliged  to  say  not  guilty,  we  must ;  but 
the  jury  wish  to  express  a  strong  opinion."  By  advice  of 
the  deputy  recorder,  however,  this  opinion  was  not  recorded, 
and  the  prisoner  was  accordingly  discharged. 

U'c  will  wind  up  this  portion  of  our  list  of  swindles  wi 


SWI^'DLES  AND  HOAXES, 


32s 


^  advertisement  of  the  same  order,  which  succeeded  in 
Realising  a  good  income  for  its  promoter  ; — 

TADIES  and  EDUCATED  WOMEN  are  rwpccifully  invited  to 
iL-r  consult  Mrs.  EGGLESTON*S  SERIES  of  60  HOME  and  other 
K'EW  EMPLOYMENTS,  whith  are  iiccinning  to  attract  a  large  share 
|>f  public  interest  for  their  marked  superiority  over  very  unrcmuneralive 
pursuits  usually  engaged  in, — Enclose  an  addressed  stamped  envelope 
|o  Mrs  Egglesion, ,  Ramsgaie,  for  prospectus. 

)  Sixty  different  businesses  to  choose  from  for  home  em- 
ployment !  Dollscye  and  lealher-apron  weaving  was  doubt- 
less among  ihcm  ;  and  in  sorting  out  those  occupations 
most  suited  to  her  various  correspondents,  Mrs  Eggleston 
Boubtless  passed  a  pleasant  time  at  the  seaside,  even  if  she 
pid  not  lay  up  riches  against  the  time  she  returned  to 
London. 

Turf-swindlers  are  next  upon  our  listj  and  no  one  will 
3oubt  that  these  gentry  are  well  deserving  of  attention,  the 
^ore  so  as,  partly  by  themselves,  and  partly  by  means  of 
iie  shortsightedness  peculiar  to  the  pubHc,  which  causes 
It  to  form  judgments  on  subjects  it  docs  not  understand, 
belchers  and  thieves  who  advertise  the  most  impossible 
["certainties"  have  been  in  numerous  instances  taken  to 
(cpresent  the  respectable  and  honourable  turfite.  We 
(now  it  is  the  custom  now  to  assume  that  a  man  is  bound 
(0  be  dishonourable  if  he  be  professionally  connected  with 
facing  in  any  trapacity  ;  and  any  effort  made  to  contradict 
fcfholesale  and  thoughtless  accusations  is  supposed  to  be  the 
outcome  of  sclf-intcrcst,  or  the  blind  devotion  of  quixotrj'. 
yitxi  who  are  cool  and  calculating  enough  when  discussing 
Ordinary  subjects,  become  almost  rabid  when  the  turf  is 
mentioned  ;  and  in  most  articles  which  have  been  written 
)n  the  subject  of  sporting  advertisements,  it  is  assumed  that 
Jic  scheming  concocters  of  bails  for  fools  are  fair  repre- 
sentatives of  the  bookmaking  class,  and  all  are  alike 
Jcnounced.  Surely  it  would  be  as  just  to  assume  that  the 
■farmers  and  promoters  of  home  employment  whose 


3»« 


fflSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


effusions  we  have  quoted  were  fair  representatives  of  orrii- 
nary  commerce,  as  that  the  •'  discretionary-investment" 
promoter  is  in  any  way  connected  with  the  legitimate 
bookmaker.  We  have  no  wish  here  to  argue  for  or  against 
betting ;  but  we  cannot  help  noticing  that  even  in  Parlia- 
ment— wliich  is  never  supposed  to  legislate  upon  what  it 
does  not  understand ! — notorious  thieves  have  been  taken 
to  represent  the  principal  advertising  bookmakers,  and  long 
arguments  as  to  the  equity  of  the  Betting-House  Act  framed 
on  the  assumption.  During  the  present  year  there  has 
been  considerable  discussion  in  the  House  of  Commons 
with  reference  to  the  Act  which  was  passed  in  1853,  Scot- 
land being  at  the  time  exempt  from  its  operation, 
effect  of  leaving  the  *Mand  of  cakes'*  in  the  position  of 
who  is  known  to  be  too  virtuous  to  need  protection 
not  visible  for  some  years ;  for  though  the  Act  of  Sir  Al< 
ander  Cockburn  had  the  effect  of  clearing  away 
numerous  betting-offices,  whicli  were  undoubtedly  at 
time  public  nuisances  and  open  lures  to  men  wh< 
speculative  disposition  was  in  inverse  proportion  to 
means  of  gratification,  the  better-class  agents,  w^hose  b* 
ness  was  carried  on  through  the  post  only,  continued 
flourish  or  decay,  according  to  circumstances,  until  il 
The  attention  of  the  police  being  then  drawn  to  nuraci 
advertisements  which  appeared  in  the  London  and 
vincial  papers  on  the  subject  of  betting,  a  raid  was  m| 
on  a  large  establishment  near  Covent  Garden  :  books 
papers,  clerks  and  managers,  were  seized  and  conveyi 
Bow  Street ;  and  though  the  employes  were  ultii 
discharged,  the  proprietor  was  ultimately  fined  heai 
decision  of  the  magistrate  being  eventually  endorsed] 
iudges  to  whom  the  case  was  referred  on  appeal. 
of  betting  men  resulted,  the  resting-place  of  some^ 
Glasgow,  and  of  others  Edinburgh  ;  from  both  of 
places  they  put  forth  their  advertisements  as  before,  safe] 
the  knowledge  that  so  far,  at  all  events^  the  law  was 


N 


\ 


SWINDLES  AND  HOAXES.  327 

jcir  side.  The  extension  of  the  Act  of  1853  was  of  course 
only  matter  of  time  ;  but  the  first  two  or  three  efforts  failed 
signally,  principally  on  account  of  the  blind  animosity  of 
the  promoters  of  the  measure,  which  caused  them  to  frame 
bills  which,  for  intolerance  and  hopeless  stupidity,  have 
perhaps  never  been  equalled.  Another  cause  was  a  feeling 
that,  while  one  form  of  betting  was  allowed  at  Tattersall's 
and  the  chief  sporting  clubs — a  form  which  had  shown 
itself  equal  to  ruining  several  peers  and  hundreds  of  young 
men  of  less  de^ee — it  was  impolitic  to  over-legislate  with 
regard  to  the  half-crowns  and  half-sovereigns  of  working 
men  and  small  tradesmen,  and  to  say  to  them,  while  yet 
the  terrible  "pUmging"  years  were  fresh  in  memory, 
'*  Dukes  and  marquises  only  shall  ruin  themselves  at  will, 
you,  the  common  people,  must  be  saving  as  well  as  in- 
dustrious." 

At  last  Mr  Anderson,  one  of  the  members  for  Glasgow, 
introduced  his  Extension  Bill  (1874),  and  though  his  argu- 
ments were  eminently  ridiculous,  as  he  assumed  that  every 
advertiser  was  a  swindler,  his  legislative  attempt  was  a 
much  greater  success  than  any  former  effort  had  been  in 
the  same  direction,  and  his  bill,  with  a  few  modifications, 
eventually  became  law.  As  an  instance  of  the  feeling  to 
which  this  measure  gave  rise,  we  quote  part  of  a  criticism 
apon  it  from  the  most  able  of  the  sporting  papers  which 
make  the  turf  their  principal  study,  the  Sportsmatt^  the  first 
journal  that  refused  the  advertisements  of  swindlers  whose 
intentions  were  evident,  a  method  of  self-abnegation  which 
might  be  studied  to  advantage  by  many  virtuous  newspapers, 
which,  while  they  weep  over  the  iniquity  of  sporting  adver- 
tisements, are  strangely  oblivious  as  to  the  character  or  effect 
of  those  which  appear  in  their  own  columns.  It  must  be 
remembered  that  the  "ring"  and  Tattersall's  betting — of 
which  mention  is  made  in  the  following— is  not  interfered 
with  by  law,  because  nothing  is  staked  before  the  decision 
of  the  race  but  "  honour."     This,  being  often  deeply  mort- 


32S  HISTORY  OF  ADVS.RTlStXG, 

gaged,  is  found  insufticient  for  the  demand  when  setllin 
day  arrives. 

Says  ilie  writer  in  the  Sportsman^  after  demolishing 
several  of  the  charges  made  against  ready-money  betting i 
"  Take  the  case  of  those  who  bet  in  the  ring,  or  at  Tatter- 
sail's,  or  in  the  clubs.  What  guarantee  is  there  between 
Uie  contracting  parties  that  there  shall  be  no  element  of 
fraudi  and  consequently  no  immorality  in  the  transaction? 
And  what  guarantee  is  there  that  one  or  other  of  the  con- 
tracting parties  who  is  induced  to  bet  is  not  a  person  who 
cannot  afford  to  lose  ?  There  is  an  inducement  to  bet  on 
either  side  :  on  the  side  of  the  layer  and  on  the  side  of  the 
backer,  and  will  any  one  acquainted  with  the  subject  be 
prepared  to  say  that  in  scores  of  cases  there  is  not  on  both 
parts  a  total  inability  to  pay  in  the  event  of  loss?  What 
man  is  there  who,  having  seen  much  of  the  ring,  cannot 
recall  many  instances  of  layers  betting  to  such  an  extent 
that  they  could  never  pay  if  the  fates  were  against  ihem, 
and  of  backers  'having'  the  ring  all  round  without  a 
sovereign  in  their  pockets  ?  Kay,  cannot  even  the  general 
public  who  are  not  initiated  into  such  mysteries  remember 
numbers  of  men  who  have  ruined  themselves  and  others 
under  the  system  in  which  Mr  Anderson  *  does  not  feel 
there  is  any  immorality,'  because  in  it  '  the  element  of 
fraud  is  not  introduced,'  and  because  under  it  *  people  who 
cannot  afford  to  lose  '  are  not  induced  to  bet  ?  The  result 
of  his  bill  will  be  that  he  will  drive  men  from  one  style  of 
betting,  in  whidi  they  lose  or  win,  knowing  the  extent  of 
their  gains  or  their  losses,  to  another,  under  which  they 
may  be  drawn  into  hopeless  speculation,  and  perhaps  coi^ 
comitant  fraud,  simply  because  they  are  not  called  on  fi 
ready  money.  We  do  not  propose  to  follow  Mr  Anders 
through  his  ingenious  and  amusing  descriptions  of  ih 
advertisements  of  tipsters  and  '  discretionary-investment 
people.  He  was  good  enough  to  introduce  ourselves  as  a 
striking  example  of  the  facility  with  which  such  persons 


icy 

I 


I 


SWINDLES  AND  HOAXES. 


329 


could  foist  their  schemes  on  the  public,  and  of  the  large 
rofits  which  were  derived  by  certain  newspaper  proprietors 
fm  them.  He  had  the  honesty  to  acknowledge  that  wc 
lad  refused  to  take  any  further  announcements  with  respect 
to  '  discretionary  investments,'  and  tiiat  wc  had  persistently 
cautioned  our  readers  to  have  nothing  to  do  with  them, 
,  ...  As  for  tipsters,  who  merely  offer  to  give  information 
for  a  shilling's  worth  of  stamps,  what  immorality  can  there 
be  in  that  which  is  not  to  be  found  in  the  '  selections'  of 
the  daily  newspapers  ?  Even  the  TimeSf  in  a  roundabout 
'  respectable '  way,  now  and  then  indicates  horses  which, 
in  the  opinion  of  its  sporting  writer,  will  win  certain  races, 
and  there  is  hardly  a  daily  paper  in  town  or  country  which 
has  not  its  regular  *  prophet,'  who  from  day  to  day  lifts  up 
his  voice  or  his  pen  and  o^ers  inducements  to  the  public 
to  bet  Can  any  one  of  such  journals  say  to  us,  '  I  am 
holier  than  thou,  because  I  sell  my  prophecies  for  a  penny, 
and  thou  inscrtcst  the  advertisements  of  men  who  want  a 
dozen  stamps  for  ilieirs'?  But  the  whole  policy  of  object- 
ing to  certain  classes  of  advertisements  is  absurd.  If  the 
proprietor  of  a  newspaper  were  to  inquire,  even  superficially, 
into  the  bcm  fitUs  of  all  the  announcements  he  makes  every 
day,  his  journal  could  not  be  conducted.  If  he  were  even 
to  confine  his  attention  to  the  examination  of  the  pro- 
spectuses of  joint-stock  companies — and  this  will  appeal  to 
Mr  Anderson — he  would  be  in  the  Bankruptcy  Court  in 
six  months.  Suppose  the  directors  of  any  one  of  hundreds 
of  bubble  concerns  which  every  year  carry  away  the  public 
with  'bogus*  announcements  were  to  appear  before  the 
manager  of  the  Times  with  their  prospectuses,  what  would 
they  think  if  he  said,  '  Gentlemen,  before  I  insert  this  you 
must  prove  to  me  that  it  is  not  a  gross  swindle  \ '  and  how 
would  they  proceed  to  do  so  ?  " 

We  admit  to  a  weakness  for  reading  the  sporting  papers, 
and  can  therefore  vouch  for  the  truth  of  what  the  Sporisman 
5ays  about  its  own  action.      It  would  have  been  well,  how- 


330  liiSTOHY  OF  ADVERTJSIS'G. 

ever.  If  other  papers  had  been  as  careful,  for  we  happen  to 
know  that  all  the  contemporaries  of  the  journal  from  which 
we  have  quoted  did  not  come  out  with  quite  such  clean 
hands-  Some  not  only  continued  to  insert  the  advertise- 
ments, despite  numerous  complaints,  but  actually  doulfd 
the  usual  tariff  price  to  the  thieves.  This  seems  to  ha^-e 
been  a  prelty  general  proceeding  when  the  discretionary 
movement  was  at  its  height,  all  papers  which  continued  to 
insert  the  specious  swindles  after  the  exposures  had  begun 
being  very  careful  to  be  well  paid  for  their  trouble.  As  in 
these  days  the  plain  truth  is  often  the  most  desperate  of 
libels,  we  must  refrain  from  particularising;  but  we  should 
think  that  no  one  in  liis  sober  senses  will  dispute  the  evi- 
dent fact  that  such  newspaper  proprietors  as  look  double 
pay  from  men  because  they  knew  they  were  assisting  them 
in  robbery,  were  morally  far  and  away  more  guilty  than  the 
robbers  themselves.  If  any  apology  is  needed  for  oar  going 
so  far  into  the  betting  subject,  it  will  be  found  in  the  almost 
total  ignorance,  as  well  as  the  blind  prejudice,  which  is  every 
day  manifested  about  the  difference  between  the  commission 
agents  and  their  greatest  enemies,  the  advertising  welchers. 
The  raid  which  drove  the  bookmakers  from  London  to 
the  principal  towns  in  Scotland  seems  almost  to  have  been 
organised  by  the  authorities  in  the  interest  of  the  scampi 
of  the  betting  world.  It  certainly  was  considerably  to 
latter's  advantage.  In  the  hurry  and  turmoil  which  ev< 
tuated  from  the  hegira,  it  was  hard  for  people  who  were 
experts  to  tell  the  good  men  from  the  bad;  and  as,  the  mc 
unfounded  a  man's  pretensions,  the  greater  were  his 
miscs,  letters  containing  remittances  almost  swarmed  inl 
the  offices  least  worthy,  of  confidence.  One  good,  howei 
resulted  from  this.  The  conversion  of  sinners  we  have  tl 
best  authority  for  regarding  as  a  blessing,  and  it  must 
admitted  that  owing  to  the  manner  in  which  money  poured 
in  upon  them,  and  one  or  two  subsequent  bits  of  luck  in 
the  way  of  unbacked  horses*  victories,  men  who  went  to 


SH'hyDLES  AND  HOAXES. 


33« 


^dsgow  and  Edinburgh  as  adventurers,  if  not  as  actual 
hieves,  remained  to  become  not  only  solvent,  but  strictly 
'trtuous.  It  was  not,  however,  until  affairs  had  somewhat 
ettled  down  in  the  North,  until  Scotland  began  to  be  re- 
;arded  as  the  permanent  abode  of  the  layer  of  odds,  that 
.dvertisements  which  on  the  face  of  them  were  gigantic 
windles  appeared.  Hitherto  the  attempts  of  impostors  had 
>een  confined  to  a  semblance  of  really  fair  and  legitimate 
>usiness,  the  firm  being  existent  as  long  as  there  was  nothing 
o  pay,  and  nan  €si  immediately  the  blow  came.  And  people 
rho  imagine  that  a  bookmaker  has  nothing  to  do  but  take 
noncy,  would  respect  him  rather  more  than  they  do  now  if 
iftcr  one  or  two  big  races  they  could  see  his  account,  and 
jote  the  scrupulous  manner  in  which  every  debt  is  paid,  if 
)e  bids  for  respectability  in  his  vocation.  A  delay  of  a  day 
n  his  settlement  would  lead  to  unpleasant  results,  for  the 
'cry  contiguity  of  the  thieves  makes  the  honest  men  more 
;xact  in  their  transactions.  So  it  is  usual,  when  a  man  has 
noney  to  receive  by  post  from  a  commission  agent,  for  him 
o  get  it  at  once,  or  most  likely  not  at  all.  The  tipstering 
md  touting  fraternities  had,  while  the  headquarters  of 
idvertising  turfites  remained  in  London,  been  satisfied  with 
ihort  paragraphs  intimating  their  absolute  knowledge  of  the 
uture,  and  their  willingness  to  communicate  such  knowledge 
o  the  British  public  for  a  consideration  in  the  way  of 
tamps,  or  a  percentage  on  winnings.  But  when  once  ready 
noncy  had  been  tasted,  it  seemed  to  act  on  these  people 
£  blood  is  said  to  on  tigers,  and  they  determined  to  have 
norc  at  all  risks.  It  was  useless  to  try  for  it  a  year  or  so 
iter  the  migration  by  applications  couched  in  the  ordinary 
tyle,  for  the  run  of  business  was  by  that  time  divided 
iniong  certain  firms,  and  the  old  slow  way  of  giving  advice 
or  shillings  and  sixpences  was  abhonent  to  minds  that 
oared  after  bank-notes  and  post-ofBce  orders;  besides,  it 
lad  very  nearly  worn  itself  out.  Fresh  moves  were  there- 
ore  necessary,  and  they  were  made  in  various  ways,  each  of 


33a 


JIIS70KY  OF  ADVEKTISSNG, 


which  uas  more  or  less  successful.  The  most  important  of 
tliem  all,  and  the  one  with  which  we  have  to  do  now,  was 
the  discretionary-investment  dodge,  which  was  for  a  time  s 
complete  success,  and  which  would  have  lasted  much  longer 
than  it  did,  had  it  not  been  for  the  faculty  of  imitation  pos- 
sessed by  thieves  other  than  those  who  inaugurated  the 
venture.  Imitation  may  be  the  sinccrcst  form  of  flatter)-, 
but  even  flattery  must  be  painful  when  it  is  destructive,  and 
Messrs  Ballice  &  Walter  could  doubtless  have  dispensed 
with  the  crowds  who  followed  in  their  wake,  and  almost 
made  the  fortunes  of  all  papers  who  would  take  their  adver- 
tisements. AVe  arc  not  aware  whether  the  system  was 
invented  by  Balliee  &  Walter,  either  or  both  \  but,  anyhow, 
they  were  its  first  promoters  to  any  extent,  and  became 
thoroughly  identified  with  it.  Rumour  states  that  Balliee 
was  a  kind  of  ^^^s  Harris,  and  that  Walter  was  the  firm. 
This  is  nothing  to  us,  though,  however  much  it  may  be  to 
those  who  were  despoiled  of  their  cash  by  the  discretionary 
swindle.  The  advertisements  put  forth  for  the  benefit  of 
those  willing  to  trust  their  money  blindly  into  the  hands 
of  men  of  whom  they  knew  nothing  must  have  been  very 
successful,  for  it  is  admitted  that  the  letters  received  in 
Glasgow  for  Balliee  &  Walter  were  so  enormous  in  quantity 
that  special  arrangements  had  often  to  be  made  for  their 
delivery.  It  is  noticeable  that  swindlers  of  this  description 
always  assume  that  their  firm  is  not  only  long  established 
but  well  known,  and  the  following*  taken  from  the  first  jm-c 
of  the  Sporting  Life  of  the  Derby-day  187 1,  will  show  that 
the  particular  people  in  question  had  no  scruple  about  inveni 
ing  facts  for  the  purpose  of  substantiating  their  arguments  ;• 


'y^HE 


KINGSCLERE    LONDON    AND    GLASGOW    TU] 

COMMISSION   AGENCY. 


Messrs.  BALLIEE  and  WALTER  beg  to  inform  Ibelr  subscribers 
and  the  sporting  public  that,  ia  consequence  of  increase  of  business, 
they  liave  opened  a  Comnil&sion  Agency  in  Glasgow,  where  in  future 
ftil  cuuunissions  wUi  be  c^iecuccd. 


tmtn  may  rely  on  liberal  Ircfltment  and  prompt  settlement  of 
J,     All  letters  answered  same  day  as  received. 


SH'/XDIES  AND  NOAXES. 


333 


SSRS.         BALLIEE         AND        WALTER 
(Members  of  the  principal  \Vcst-End  Clubs), 
62,   Jamaica    Stkebt.    Glasgow. 

retofore,  ComniiHioDs  of  every  description,  and  to  any  amount, 
indertakcn,  ihc  following  being  the  leading  features  : — 
TMKNTS    ON    FORTHCOMING     EVENTS    cnected    at    the    bcst 

Prices. 

Favourites  backed  at  the  post,  and  the  rate  of  odds  guanin- 
noted  by  the  sporting  paper  the  investor  chooses  to  adopt, 
s*  Mounts  invested  upon  in  accordance  with  any  scale  or 

lUMlssiONS  for  EPSOM  MEETING  will  meet  with  prompt 


THE      EPSOM      CARNIVAL. 
THE  OAKS  A  CERTAINTY. 
[So  if  to  be  a  millionaire  at  present  is  yotir  aim, 
lon't  hesitate,  but  join  at  once  our  syslcmfttic  gains." 

ShakxpcarCf  revised  and  improved. 

IA  Safe  Investment.— Winning  a  Certainty, 

fGSCLERE  RACING  CIRCULAR 

DISCRETIONARY    INVESTMENTS. 
^  Messrs.  BALLlfcE  and  WALTPIR,    Proprietor* 

(Memlwrs  of  the  principal  WeU-End  Clubs), 
nly  reco^ised  method  by  which  backers  of  horses  can  win 
B5  at  all  the  principal  meetings. 

'Prospectuses  Free  on  Receipt  op- Addres. 


SRS.  BALLIEE  and  WALTER  draw  the  aitcniion  of  inves- 
fn  to  the  alMmportant  fact  thai  they  alune  of  all  6rms  who 
jB  Discretionary  Investments  arc  to  be  seen  personally  in  the 
d  are  represented  at  the  lists  outside,  at  every  meeting  through* 
racing  season.  Some  firms,  although  they  state  they  ore  pies- 
never  to  be  seen. 

LECTED  MORTEMERTO  WIN  AND  A  PLACE 
FOR  CMF.STER  CUP; 


k 


334  ///STOJ^y  OF  ADVERT/SIXG. 

THE  DWARF, 

GREAT    NORTHERN; 

LORD  HAWTHORN. 

FLYING    DUTCHMAN; 

STANLEY. 

DONCASTER  SPRING  HANDICAP; 

With  nearly  every  other  winner  at  York  and  Newmarket. 

Wc  defy  contradiction,  and  court  inquiry. 

Results  ok  Late  Meetings: — 
Each  j£"io  investor  at  York  was  remitted  by  Friday's  post  (May  M 
;£'loS  nett  winnings. 

£acliji^5  investor  at  Doncastcr  was  remitted  hy  Monday's  post,; 
Being  exclusive  of  stake  and  nett  return  after  commission  (5  per 
cent.)  had  been  deducted. 
Newmarket  accounts  and  winnings  were  forwarded  by  Tut 
post,  May  16. 

Gentlemen  of  capital  and  backers  of  horses  can  now  judge  of 
jntrinsic  value  of  this  infallible  system  of  backing  oar  Final  Seic 
at  the  post. 

MESSRS.  BALLIEE  and  WALTER  will  continue  tbetr  hi 
successful  syjilcm  of  DISCRETIONARY  INVESTMENT 
at  the 

EPSOM     MEETING, 
where  they  personally  attend,  and  as  such  a  great  influx  of  business! 
expected  during  the  Derby  Week,  they  have  engaged  three  extra  C< 
missioners  to  assist  Ihcm  in  carr^'ing  out   the  system,  and  again 
laoguine  of  realising  a  gold- achieving  riclory. 

AT  Epsom  Meeting  Last  Summer,  Season  1S70, 
Eachj^25  investor  was  returned  £yoi  nett  Winnings,  in  addition 
stake  deposited. 
Each  investor  of/20  in  1S68  realised  j^487. 

£So  u  1870       »      £iAO^- 
The  above  sums  were  paid  to  each  investor  of  the  specified  amonni 
and  this  season  we  with  confidence  assert  that  the  inv&»tments  will  bo 
more  remunerative  to  the  investor. 

The  Oaks  this  season  will  be  won  by,  comparatively  speaking,  on 
outsider.  Last  season's  sul>scribers  will  remember  our  warning  them 
as;ainst  Hester,  and  we  assure  our  readers  llut  Hannah  will,  hke  oil 
the  Baron's  favourites,  be  doomed  to  defeat.  A  clever  Northern  divi- 
sion have  a  filly  the  beau  ideal  of  Blink  Bonny,  as  being  tried  a  71b 
better  animal  than  Boihwell,  and  with  health  must  win  the  fillici'  r.icc 


SIVJ.XDIES  AND  HOAXES. 


335 


"1 1  canter.  The  owner  most  unfortunately  oinUled  to  enter  her  for  the 
*  wo  I'housand  and  Derby,  or  we  should  Iiave  seen  her  credited  with 
^^firat-named  event,  and  first  favourite  for  Blue  Riband  honours. 

SEVERAL  RODS  ARE  IN  PICKLE 
■Or  the  minor  events.     Particulars  were  given  in  our  last  week's  Cir- 
^lar  (May  12),  and  even  at  this  distant  period  wc  arc  enabled  to  pre- 
dict the  sacccu  of  liix  ceitaiii  winners. 
K^  HAVING  HORSES  OF  OUR  OWN, 

^^nlhers  identical  with  our  interests,  running  at  this  meeting,  coupled 
■Win  the  important  commissions  wc  have  the  working  of  at  EPSOM. 

Our  knowledge  of  market  movements,  tlie  intimate  terms  we  are  on 
Irith  the  various  owners,  jockeys,  and  trainers,  our  social  position  with 
the  elite  of  tlie  racing  world,  enables  us  to  asi;eitaiu  the  intentions  of 
Other  owners  and  the  clumces  their  respcciivc  candidates  po^ess — 
[nformalion  far  beyond  the  reach  of  other  nivenisers. 

ris  is  by  no  means  all;  Ave  merely  pause  to  take  breath 
recover  self-possessioo,  after  a  steaily  perusal  of  Mr 
Walter's  benefactions.  It  is  noticeable  that  the  standard  of 
verse  employed  by  these  philanthropists  is  about  on  a  par 
Mfilh  their  standard  of  morality.  It  seems  wonderful  that 
any  sane  person  should  believe  in  the  existence  of  a  certain 
guide  to  the  winning-ix)st,  and  the  idea  that,  if  there  had 
been  such  a  thing,  Messrs  Balliee  &  Walter  would  have 
assuredly  used  it  for  themselves  alone,  never  seems  to  have 
entered  into  the  heads  of  their  victims,  at  all  events  until 
100  late.  After  the  vaimt  about  position  and  information, 
Ibc  intimates  of  "  the  elite  of  the  racing  world  "  go  on  : — 

MESSRS.  BALLIEE  and  WALTER,  alone  of  all  firms  that  un- 
dertake Uiscrelionary  Inveslments,  are  to  be  seen  personally  tn 
the  Ring,  and  lliey  wlsli  to  draw  the  attention  of  Turf  speculators  to 
the  fact  that  NO  OTHUR  ADVERTISERS  ARE  OWNERS  OF 
HORSES,  despite  what  they  may  say  to  the  contrary.  If  their  systems 
equalled  ours,  would  they  not  accept  the  challenge  given  by  us  for  the 
past  twelve  months  in  the  various  sporting  papers?  Vide  commence- 
ineni  of  ftdvertiiicment. 

So  sangiiine  are  we  of  niocess  at  Kpsom,  the  innumemble  and 
peculiar  advantages  presented,  and  every  facility  being  offered  fur  the 
successful  working  of  our 

DISCRETIONARY      METHOD, 
Ihat  wc  are  enabled  to 


336 


nrSTORY  OF  ADVSRT/SIXU, 


GUARANTEE     AGAINST     LOSS, 
ftiid  assert  with  confidence  that 

>VI>miNG  IS  REDUCED  TO  AN  ABSOLUTE  CERTAINTV. 


Deposit  REQurRKn  for  Discretionary  Investments  at  the 

EPSOM  SUMMER  MEETING:— 

;t5oo.;^ioo,/so.;i^25.jC»o,  or^^s. 

By  investing  in  accordance  with  tliis  infallible  method  of  backing  oar 

final  selections  ac  the  post,  loss  is  simply  an  impossibility,  and  gitaran- 

tccd  against, 

WINNING  BEING  REDUCED  TO  AN  ABSOLUTE 

CERTAINTY, 

This  onen-repeated  asftenion  (and  not  once  contradicted  for  the  past 
five  years),  and  the  winnings  realised  weekly  for  subscribers  who  patron- 
ise this  system,  is  sufficient  to  prove  its  intrinsic  value. 

This  is  just  the  sort  and  class  of  meeting  for  gentlemen  of  capital  and 
systemalic  investors  to  invest  a  £yxi  or  ;^l,ooo  bank,  being  indeed  a 
golden  opportunity  that  all  should  embrace.  The  fact  of  our  £uar>o* 
teeing 

A  Win  Equal  to  pi^r  Success  of  Last  Summek, 
and,  as  previously  slated, 

GVARANTCE  to  HOtD  THR  ISVr.STOR.  AGAINST  LoSS  OF  EVEN  A 

Fractional  Part  of  Capital  Employed, 
should  be  sufficient  to  convince  gentlemen  of  the  true  character  aiwl 
value  of  this  infallible  method  of  backing  our  final  selections  at  l)w 
post. 

CAN  ANY  SYSTEM  BE  SO   LUCRATIVE  TO  THE 
INVESTOR? 

Our  position  as  owners  of  horses  and  proprietors  of  "TITE  KINGS- 
CLERE  RACING  CIRCULAR."  the  most  successful  medium  of  lOl 
Turf  advices,  and  has  treble  the  circulation  of  Awy  other  circular  pql^' 
lished  ;  the  flattering  encomiums  passed  on  our  ''Infallible  Method" 
by  llie  Sporting  Press  of  the  United  Kmgdotn,  and  being  recommended 
by  them  as 

"The  only  recognised  method  by  which  backers  of  horses  can  win 
large  sums  at  all  the  principal  meetings  ;" 
coupled  with  our  position  as  the  most  influential  Comn)i<;$ton  Agents 
both  in  the  London  and  Manchester  Markets,  ensure  gentlemen  en* 
trusting  us  with  Discretionary  Investments  being  fairly  and  honestly 
dealt  with,  and  the  successes  that  we  promise  and  achieve  meeting  after 
meeting  in  the  columns  of  thii  and  other  papers. 


SPy/J^^DZSS  AND  JiOAXES. 


CTS  ARE   STUBBORN  THINGS. 


following    average   results  speak  volumes   in   favour 

;  following  successes  have  been  achieved  this  season  by 
THE  KINGSCLERE  RACING  CIRCULAR'S 
INFALLIBLE  METHOD 

OP 

DISCRETIONARY  INVESTMENTS. 

\^%$  investor  at  Enfield  received  nctt  winnings  value j^'aoa 
:h  C\^  investor  at   Lichfield  was  remitted  by  Thursday's  post 
I    I3)j£S2   10!^.,  being  winnings  and   stake  included,  after  the  5 
:nt.  commission  had  been  deducted. 

:h  investor  of  a /^ro  slake  at  llie  Lincoln  Meeting  received  nvtt 
Bgs  of;^i8o  105.  by  Tuesday's  post,  March  38, 
di  investor  at  Liverpool  in  accordance  with  this  system,  on  two 
Its,  viz., 

THE  LAMB Win, 

SCARUINGTON A  place, 

^75  with  each /lo  invested. 
J^to  stake  realised  j^2oo  nett  winnings  at  the  Burton  (Lincoln) 

ng- 

[25  stake  invested  on  Waterloo  Cup  realised  ^^300, 

MASTER  McGRATH 

■elected  right  throughout  the  piece,  and  again  in  finals  with  Pre- 


4 


*io  stake  realised  at  the  Cambridgeshire  Meeting  the  sum  of  j^240 

nnnings. 

*5  stake  at  the  West  Drayton  Meeting  realised  ^30  nett  winnings. 

imley  and  several  other  meetings  were  also  highly  successful. 

Cmxton  Park  each  £,\o  invested  realised ;^I0L  nett. 
lj^25  invested  at  Thirak  realiaedj^iso. 
ABOVE  AMOUNTS  HAVE  BEEN  PAID  THIS  SEA- 

pro  ALL  PATRONS  WHO  ENTRUSTED  US  WITH 
LETIONARY  INVESTMENTS  OVER  THESE  MEET- 
[.again  proving  the  value  of  this  method  over  all  oLhers  adver* 

augurs  well  for  the  future,  as  the  above  successes  » '^  ^}^' 
ttend   EPSOM,  and   are  always   successful  ih  with 


lally  a 
LOSS    HAS    NEVERN?CCURRED 


J  circum- 
TO  FOi;an  at  tlic 


\ 


338 


I/rSTORY  OP  ADVERTISING. 


OF    OUR  SYSTEM,  and  ihia  season  we  are  even  more  than  ever 

confident  of  success. 

Cash  reaching  us  on  Thursday  will  be  in  time  for  two  days*  inveil^ 
menu ;  and  casih  Arriving  by  Friday's  first  post  will  be  invested  on 
Oaks  winner  and  the  Uu  day  of  the  meeting. 

Five  per  cent,  deducted  from  all  winnings. 

The  Larcer  the  Sta.ke,  the  Greater  Scope  is  Availablb 

FOR  Lucrative  Speculation. 

Loss  OF  Stake  is  in  all  cases  Guaranteed  Against. 

The  opulent  winnings  realised  weekly  throughout  the  season  cannot 
fail  to  convince  systematic  speculators  that  this  system  is  the  pw 
cxccltence  of  all  methods  for  winning  large  sunu  at  each  and  every 
important  race-gathering. 

Winnings  and  account  of  inveslmcnu  will  be  forwarded  on  Monday, 
May  29. 

Investoncan  ha'i'e  their  winnings  (less  5  per  cent.)  remitted  by  ope* 
cheque  or  bank  notes,  as  preferred,  by  signifying  their  wishes  on  thit 
point  when  rcmilltng  cash  for  investment. 

One  trial  is  sufficient  to  prove  to  the  mo^t  sceptical  the  value  of 
method  over  all  others  advertised.      Gentlemen  who  have   lost 
money  in  the  so-called  winning  modus  swindles,  or  through  folloi 
Ibcir   own   fancies,    (tdvice   of  puffing  tipsterv,   newspaper   seU 
backing  first  favourites,  Jockeys'  mounis,  or  any  other  system,  sfa( 
give  our  infallible  method  a  trial  at  the  Epsom  Meeting,     Cash  she 
be  forwarded  to  reach  us  on  or  before  Tuesday,  addic&scd  to  Mr  W» 
WALTER,  62  Jamaica-street,  GIa5gow.     If  after  that  dale,  adc 
letters,  &c,  &c..  W.   H.  WALTER  (of  Kingsclcre),  Box  ao,  Pi 
office,   Epsom,  where  due  precaution  has  been  taken  for  their 
delivery. 

Cheques  to  be  crossed,  Bank,  Newbury.     Letters  containing 
notes  to  be  regUtercd.     Scotch  and  Irish  notes  taken  as  cxsh.     Sti 
204.  6d.  to  the  pound.     P.O.  Orders  in  all  canes  to  be  made  payal 
W.  H.  WALTER,  and  drawn  on  the  Post-ofHce,  Newbury,  Uc'rki 

* ^*  The  successes  we  achieve  weekly,  our  social  status  on  the 
the  years  we  have  been  before  the  public,  the  fact  of  our  being 
moters  of  Dtscrclionaiy  Investments,  our  selecting  Jack  Spigot  for 
and  Suburban,  A' ulcnn  for  Lincoln  Handicap,  the  Lamb  for  Gi 
National,  fiothwcU  for  Two  Thousand,   Moricmer  (a  place),  Ch< 
vutT^..    t],g  Dwarf  for  Great   Northern    Handicap;    Lord   llawi 
both  in     Dutchman's  Handicap  ;    Stanley,   Doncastcr  Handicap, 
Inwling  U4  ^^y  other  winner  at  York  and  Doncaster,  &c.,  prove  the 
dealt  with,  a  nnation  and  the  integrity  and  value  of  our  system  of 
"»^''"C  in  »l>ry  Investments. 


Siy/XDIES  AND  HOAXES, 

S  THE 

fCSCLERE  RACING  CIRCULAR  of  Friday  next  (May 
[^),  price  ts.,  will  contain  a  Review  of  the  Derby  running,  and 
flNNER  OF  THE  ASCOT  STAKES,  with  some  imporlant 
iuicnt  ROVAL  HUNT  CUP  and  ST.  LEGER,  with  selections 
ftys  for  all  races  at  the  Manchester,  Scarborough,  Winchester, 
Drayton,  and  Wye  Meetings.  Notes  on  the  Two  Year  Old 
of  the  Season,  and  a  Bird's-eye  View  of  the  Middle  Park  Plnle, 
particulars  of  Waller's  Visit  to  the  Dark  Two  Year  Olds  at 
graining  Grounds.  Terms; — Season,  21s. — Addre&s  orders  and 
\  W.  H.  WALTER  (of  Kingsclcrc),  Ravciiscouri  Park,  Ilammcr- 
'London.  W. 

hanking  our  Derby  subscribers  far  their  past  support,  we  respect- 
l^icit  a  continuance  of  their  favours  on  the  above  terms. 
(Private  Telegraphic  Key  Book  will  be  issued  to  Season  Sub- 
'%  only  in  the  course  of  a  few  days.     Those  that  intend  renew- 
BIT  subscriptions  should  do  so  at  once. 
■ 

must  not  be  imaginc<l  that  this  advertisement  was 
icd  to  obtain  one  large  haul  before  the  business  was 
Joned.  With  little  alteration  it  ran  for  a  very  consider- 
mc  in  many  papers,  and  the  expenses  of  advertising 
must  have  been  enormous.  For  it  is  not  to  be  ex- 
ihat  any  blind  credulity  exhibited  itself  in  tlie  various 
ing  offices,  and  hard  cash,  and  plenty  of  it,  had  to 
nded  before  a  line  of  Ballicc  &  Walter's  was  allowed 
:ar.  It  will  be  seen  by  what  we  have  quoted  that 
bgs  and  accounts  of  investments  are  promised  on  Mon- 
ind  in  true  business-like  style  every  depositor  received 
bvelope.  With  what  feverish  anxiety  many  must  have 
(open  the  enclosure  !  So  many  men,  so  many  minds, 
the  proverb,  and  the  ways  of  expressing  wrath  must 
'1  been  various  indeed.  We  are,  however,  not  in  a 
fon  to  furnish  any  particulars  as  to  how  the  news  was 
ircd,  it  is  enough  to  know  what  the  information  was. 
las  maybe  guessed,  it  was  not  satisfactory.  The  cir- 
k  were  always  neatly  constructed,  and  set  forth  with 
[ret  that  owing  to  a  combination  of  untoward  circum- 
ses  the  iiopcs  of  the  chief  investor,  '*  the  man  at  the 


340 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISIKC, 


post,"  had  been  dashed,  and  for  that  week — always  th< 
week  of  such  an  occurrence — matters  had  resulted 
Irously.  Then  wouUl  follow  a  statement  of  accou 
which  it  was  shown  that  investments  had  been  fortu 
the  outset,  that  then  they  had  changed,  and  tliat  by  p! 
loo  much  money  on  an  apparent  certainty,  so  as  to  r© 
the  losings,  the  whole  bulk  of  the  bank  had  departed, 
to  return.  The  sums  received  by  Messrs  Balliee  & 
ter  were  of  course  various,  and  according  to  the  amount, 
was  the  table  arranged  ;  but  there  was  a  great  family 
ness  about  them  all,  the  principle  being  to  show  tlia) 
horses,  when  they  did  not  win,  were  very  close  up,  an 
seconds,  with  now  and  again  a  third,  were  nearly  al 
chosen  !  Thus  one  ;^io  stake  for  the  Derby  week  of 
— the  week  in  which  the  advertisement  given  appei 
was  accounted  for  thus  : — 


Epsom,  Tuesday,  May  23. 
Trial  Slakes.  Manille, 
Horlon  Stakes,  Trident,    . 
Mai-ien  Plate,  Queen  Bee, 
Hous  Stakes,  Bandcrolle, 
Woodcote  Sukes,  Cremomc  (II  to  S  on), 

Wednesday. 
Bentinck  Plate,  Lady  Atholstone, 
Derby,  King  of  ilic  Forest, 
Stanley  Stakes,  Hamilton, 
Match,  Lizzie  Cowl  (5  to  4  on), 
Manor  Stakes,  Holdcnby, 
Town  Plate,  Banderolle,    .        « 


Thursday. 
Glasgow  Plate,  Countryman  (2  lo  I  on). 
High  Level  Handicap,  Free  Trade,  . 
Two-year-old  Sl«)ces,  Clotilde  filly,    . 
'J'adworlli  Stakes,  Manna, 


^Yon. 

—  l^ 

—  I 

—*  3 

—  O 

;^0     14        6 

—  o 

—  I 


o    S    o 


050 


C\    7    6  j!:i3  : 

With  five  percent,  commission  charged  on  the  win 
this  left  a  balance  o!  ^i,  3s.  g^d.  due  to  Messrs  Ba 


SIV/XDLSS  AND  HOAXES. 


34« 


&  Walter,  which  it  was  hoped  would  be  at  once  remitted. 
This  was  cruel,  but  crueller  still  was  the  statement,  that  had 
ihe  stake  been  larger,  affairs  would  have  arranged  theni- 
felves  satisfactorily,  as  a  great  change  took  place  at  the 
close  of  Thursday  and  on  Friday,  and  those  whose  banks 
lasted  over  the  first  run  of  ill-luck  left  oflf  winners  of  larse 
sums.     With  the  demand  for  payment  of  balance  came  a 
request  which,  from  its  very  coolness,  must  have  staggered 
those  who,  being  once  victimised,  could  sec  through  the 
swindle,  though  in  very  many  instances — as  if  in  corrobor- 
ation of  Mr  Carlyle's  theory — it  was  complied  with.     This 
was  a  desire  for  a  fresh  trial,  and  positive  security  from  loss 
was  guaranteed.     It  is  noticeable  in  the  table  given  that 
by  a  judicious  selection  of  races  and  horses  the  winnings 
%vere  bound  to  be  always  low,  as  animals  with  odds  on  are 
selected,  and  that  when  stakes  are  lowest.     When  on  the 
doubling  principle  the  stake  on  the  chosen  winner  would 
"Le  inconveniently  large  a  race  was  omitted.     The  returns 
made  were  necessarily  variouS|but  that  given  is  an  accurate 
representative  of  the  system. 

Balliee  &  Walter  continued  to  flourish  for  a  long  time ; 
but  whether  it  was  that  they  became  individually  greedy, 
•whether  newspaper  proprietors  became  exorbitant  in  their 
demands  on  the  spoil,  or  whether  rivalry  affected  them,  we 
lunow  not,  all  we  do  know  is  that  they  committed  a  most 
openly  outrageous  act  on  a  race-course,  and  the  bubble  at 
once  burst  It  may  seem  strange  that  anything  discre- 
tionary-investment agents,  who  ha<l  been  gradually  becom- 
ing a  byword  and  a  reproach,  could  do  would  affect  their 
position  ;  but  our  duty  is  to  record  the  fact,  and  not  to 
allow  it  to  be  disputed  on  any  theoretic  grounds.  If  they 
had  calmly  continued  to  merely  swindle,  they  might  have 
advertised  till  now  \  but  they  outraged  the  sanctity  of  the 
British  race-course,  and  were  damned  for  all  time,  if  not  to 
all  eternity.  They  had  become  possessed  by  some  means 
or  other  of  a  hurdle-racer  called  Goodfcllow,  and  two  or 


34» 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISIXG. 


three  weelcs  before  one  of  the  suburban  gate-money  nn 
ings  they  made  a  match  for  Iiim  to  run  a  race  at  it  agaii 
a  very  moderate  mare.  Immediately  this  was  done  tl 
circularised  all  customers,  telling  them  to  bo  sure  and 
Goodfellow,  as  he  could  not  possibly  lose,  and  stating  ll 
on  account  of  very  heavy  investments  already  made,  th< 
could  afford,  as  a  favour  to  fheir  clients,  to  return  them 
double  the  od<i3  which  would  be  laid  against  Goodfellow 
on  the  day.  In  the  Kingsdcrc  Racing  Circuiar^  a  weekly 
pamphlet  issued  by  these  honourable  gentlemen,  we  UnJ 
imderdate  March  lo,  1871,  the  following  ingenious  apphci- 
tion.  This,  it  has  been  since  proved,  brought  heavy  sums 
to  the  Ravcnscourt  Park  exchequer,  whence  it  was 
allowed  to  depart,  Messrs  Balliee  &  Walter,  like  true 
legitimate  bookmakers,  preferring  to  lay  the  6  to  4's  agains 
their  own  horse  themselves,  rather  than  that  their  patrons 
should  be  inconvenienced  by  having  to  take  shorter  pried 
from  others  : — 

CROYDON  SPECIAL  INVESTMENT. 

The  match— Goodfellow  v.   Harrielt— will  come  off  at  Croydon  oi' 
Tuesday  next.     It  is  simply  a  matter  of  putting  the  coin  down 
picking  it  up  again.     It  is  any  odds  on  our  tior^e,  and  as  we  wish 
Subsctibers  to  participate  in  this  certainty,  we  will  undertake  lo  ot 
for  them  6  10  4  for  all  cash  sent,  which  must  reach  Mr  Walter,  Rai 
court  Park,  if  possible  by  Monday  evening,  and  not  later  llian 
day's  Arst  post.     Gibson  is  sure  to    back    Harriett  for  a  looo^ 
probably  bring  her  favourite.     Tlic  solo  reason  of  us  wishing  Subscii 
lo  allow  ui  to  invest  for  them,  is  lo  prevent  ihem  rushing  on  and  spt 
Uic  market,  which  will  be  lo  their  interest  as  well  as  our  owa. 
have  engaged  one  of  the  clovercst  cross  country  riders  of  the  day  to 
Goodreltow,  and  our  horse  never  was  so  fit  and  well  as  at  the  pi 
time,     DanieU  will  h.ive  the  mount  of  Harriett.     Such  a  chance 
not  occur  again  ihioughout  the  season.     Investors  should  speculi 
£10  or  j^ioo  Bank.     We  cannot  undertake  lo  invest  more  than 
for  any  one  of  our  patrons. 

BythismeansBalliee&Waltcrobtainetl  from  their  purbl 
dupes  a  large  amount  of  money  with  which  to  back 
iellow,  and  of  this  they  of  course  placed  as  much  as 


sm^Ia\'dles  and  /waxes. 


343 


could  upon  Harriett,  the  opposing  candidate.  In  the  race, 
if  race  so  iniquitous  a  transaction  can  be  called,  the  discre- 
tionary-investment Iiorse  was,  as  might  have  been  expected, 
"pulled,"  so  that  Baliiee  &  Walter  had  all  the  money 
they  received  to  the  good,  besides  what  they  won  from  the 
unsuspecting  by  backing  the  animal  they  had  pretended 
to  oppose.  Tliis  led  to  their  gradually  disappearing  from 
the  front  pages  of  the  newspapers,  thovigh  they  continued 
their  business  under  an  alias  very  successfully-  Walter  was 
eventually  fined  a  hundred  pounds  at  one  of  the  metropoli- 
tan courts,  under  the  Belting-House  Act,  1S53,  for  having 
carried  on  a  part  of  his  business  at  Ilammersmith.  It 
seems  rather  ludicrous  that  a  man  should  have  been  fined 
for  what  he  in  reality  never  did.  But  lawyers  and  magis- 
trates could  not  distinguish  the  difference  between  betting 
and  only  pretending  to  bet,  so  they  fined  Mr  Walter  just  as 
they  would  have  done  if  ];e  had  been  a  really  honourable 
man,  and  had  therefore  desefved  punishment. 

From  the  discretionary-investment  class  of  turf-swindler 
we  will  now  pass  on  to  another,  quite  as  ingenious  and  very 
often  as  dangerous.  A  few  years  back,  when  opportunity 
served — that  is,  when  the  honest  layer  of  odds  was  harassed 
by  the  police  and  driven  from  London,  and  when  good  men 
and  bad  were  almost  irremediably  mixed  up — a  sharp  rogue 
hit  upon  an  idea  for  making  the  lipstering  and  private- 
advice  business  a  means  to  quite  a  new  phase  of  imposi- 
tion. This  was  known  among  those  who  profited  ly  it  as 
••forcing  the  voucher,''  and  a  very  pretty  little  game  it  was 
while  it  lasted,  though  the  profits  of  pioneers  were  of 
course  consitlerably  diminished  as  soon  as  ever  the  secret 
got  wind,  by  the  imitative  faculty  to  which  reference  has 
been  already  made.  Commencing,  as  usual,  with  small 
advertisements  and  large  profits,  forcers  in  time  found  them- 
selves, by  stress  of  competition,  obliged  to  spend  a  good 
share  of  their  hard  earnings  in  specially-templing  invitarions 
to  those  who  would  go  any  but  the  right  way  towards  being 


341 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 


wealthy ;  or  else  to  seek  other  courses.  So  in  1872  we 
three  or  four  firms  occupying  a  large  share  of  the  paj 
and  giving  forth  promises  without  stint  Whether  t1 
original  forcer  was  in  any  of  these  partnerships  it  is  imj 
sible  to  tell,  as  the  names  were,  as  a  rule,  fictitious,  and  oft( 
changed  ;  but  whether  or  not,  it  is  certain  that  those  wbl 
advertised  heaviest  drove  all  small  thieves  from  the  fieldl 
and  so,  two  years  back,  the  business,  as  far  as  we  are  con^ 
cerned,  was  carried  on  chiefly  by  Adkins  &  U'ood,  Robertl 
Danby  &  Co.,  Marshall  &  Grant,  and  James  RawUngs  &' 
Co.,  who  advertised  quite  separately,  but  whose  notifications 
might  very  easily  have  been  the  work  of  one  pen.  Wc  will 
therefore  take  Rawlings  &  Co.  to  represent  the  fraternity, 
and  in  their  advertisement  which  appeared  at  the  end  of 
April  1872  will  be  found  the  peculiarities  of  all  the  otheis. 
This  is  it  :— 

DIGBY  GRAND  sent  to  every  season  subscriber,  and  for  a  place  it 

6  to  I,  to  every  reader  of 

-yilL    PKIlMIER     racing     CIRCULAR- 

Proprietors, 

JAMES     RAWLINGS     and    Co., 

6s,YORK    PLACE, 

EOINBURGIL 


Published  by  the  Proprietors  every  Saturday,  at  their  chief  ofGce,  6| : 
York  Place,  Edinburgh. 


THE  PREMIER  RACING  CIRCULAR  sUlI  maintains  its  wcU. 
merited  reputation  as  the  only  infallible  and  nncrringiy-succcssfol 
winninf;  g^ide,  by  the  aid  "of  which  private  backcn  can  and  do,  week 
by  week,  lealisc  hundreds  of  pounds  with  perfect  safety  over  the  pria- 
cipal  races  ihroughout  ihe  kingdom.  The  uninterrupted  series 
Rucccsbes  which  have  attended  its  vaiiginations  during  past 
have  l)een  gloriously  crowned  by  the  success  of  every  special  ini 
nicnt  advised  in  its  pages  this  season,  as  will  be  seen  by  ihe  follow 
list  of  winuere  already  given  : — 


SWINDLES  AXD  I/OAXSS. 


345 


Price  at  which 

ciicDia  wero 
Kjk*.  Seleettan.  R««ult.       put  on. 

[Croydon  Footman Won...  15  lo  i 

Uncuin  Hnndicap Guy  Dayrell Won...  20  lb  1 

^Gnnd  Naiional Casse  T£tc Won...  2510! 

'ouinghara  Handicap Flurry Won...   10  to  I 

Ireat  Warwick  Handicap  ...  Cedric  tlic  Saxon  ...  Won...   12  to  I 

'^arwick  Cirand  AnnuaJ Snow-ilonn  Won...     7  to  I 

forthamptonshire  Stakes  ...  Messager Won...     8  to  i 

!ity  and  Suburban Dig  by  Grand Won...   25101 

TTius  ftj^io  Ktalce  on  each  of  our  selections  already  made  this  season 
has  now  won  the  handsome  sum  of^i,  164  after  deducting  our  commit* 
iion  of  5  per  cent. 

If  one  statement  of  the  above  glorious  triumph  is  untnie,  we  boldly 
invite  our  subscribeni  and  clients  to  expose  us  in  the  fullest  manner  in 
the  sporting  papers.  Promptitude,  dc-patch,  exactitude,  and  liberality, 
as  in  the  past,  will  ever  be  our  watchwords  in  the  future. 

Every  reader  of  "  The  Sporting  Life  ''  is  earnestly  invited  to  send  at 
once  for  this  week's  number,  as  the  information  therein  contained  will 
enable  everyone  to  win  a  little  fortune  over  that  splendid  and  highly 
lucrative  mode  of  invcitmcnl— 

A    DOUBLE     EVENT 
lltat  cannot  be  upset. 
The  positive  Winners  of 
THE    TWO    THOUSAND 
and 
ONE  THOUSAND  GUINEAS, 
rarely  lliat  we  advise  tliis  method  of  investing,  but  when  we 
sent  out  to  our  clients  a  double  event  it  has  never  failed  to  come 
Last  year  we  advised  a  double  event  fur  these  races— 

•    Two  Thousand.. Bothwell Won 
One  Thousand Hannah  Won 

And  this  year  both  our  selections  arc,  if  possible^  greater  and  more 
ttndeniable  certainties. 

B  THE  TWO  THOUSAND  GUINEAS. 

Of  all  the  good  things  that  in  the  course  of  a  long  and  varied  expe- 
rience on  the  Turf  it  ha*  ever  been  our  good  fortune  to  be  posseted  of, 
we  cannot  recall  a  single  occasion  on  which  every  attendant  circum- 
atance  combined  so  surely  to  render,  as  in  the  present  instance,  the  race 
such  an  absolute  foregone  conclusion  for  our  selection.  The  trial  which 
took  place  this  week  was  unprecedented  in  its  severity,  and,  to  the 


k 


///STOSV  Of  ADVERT1S2XG. 


Burprise  of  owner  and  trainer,  the  animal  performed  K>  far  beyond 
their  most  sanguine  expectations  or  hopes  as  to  show  them  that  >i. 
is  reduced  to  tlie  greatest  moial  certainly  ever  known  in  the  hii 
the  English  Turf.  This  is  an  opportunity  similar  to  those  llial  iiivc 
made  the  fortunes  of  many  of  our  most  wealthy  speculators,  for  whom, 
as  in  the  present  instance,  victory  is  a  foregone  conclusion  and  defeat  a 
moral  impossibility.  Everyone  should  seize  the  opportunity  of  reaping 
the  rich  harvest  of  golden  fruit  that  awaits  t)ie  bold  speculator  of  fort- 
^one  cunclu:>ion&  like  this. 

THE  ONE  THOUSAND  GUINEAS. 
It  ii  to  us  an  easy  task  to  select  ihe  winner  of  this  race,  as  the 
iQimensc  supeiiority  she  enjoys  over  every  other  animal  ergaged 
(known  only  to  owner,  Imlner,  and  ourselves)  is  so  vast  that  this  race 
will  be  little  more  than  an  exercise  canter  for  this  speedy  filly.  So 
quietly  has  this  good  thing  been  nursed  by  the  shrewd  division  to  which 
the  mare  belongs,  that  a  real  good  price  is  now  to  be  had,  though  when 
this  superb  specimen  of  an  English  thoroughbred  is  seen  at  the  fKtst, 
we  arc  confiilent  that  even  money  will  be  eagerly  snapped  up  by  those 
who  till  then  neglect  to  back  her. 

THE  DOUBLE  EVENT, 
as  stated  above,   is  as  sure  to  come  oflT  as  these  lines  are  in  print. 
Send  then  at  once  for  this  week's  number,  and  do  not  delay  an  hour  if 
you  wish  to  land  a  fortune  over  these  two  genuine  certainties. 

We  could  wisiU  no  better  opportunity  to  display  the  genuine  good 
things  sent  out  by  the  "Premier  Racing  Circular"  than  these  two 
races  present,  and  we  beg  that  everyone  will  at  once  send  six  stampi 
and  stami>e<l  addressed  envelope  fur  this  week's  number,  and  stand 
the»  morals  to  win  lliem  a  fortune. 
Address — 

JAMES  RAWLINCS  and  Co., 
65,  York  Place, 

Edinburgh. 

If  we  were  not  certain  that  these  men  got  large  sums  of 
money  from  willing  victims,  it  would  seem  almost  impossible 
that  people  could  be  found  credulous  enough  to  believe 
that  absolute  certainly  could  be  secured  on  the  turf.  Cer- 
tainty of  losing  is  naturally  much  easier  than  certainly  of 
winning,  and  yet  even  loss  cannot  be  reduced  to  less  than 
.imminent  probability  so  long  as  a  horse  goes  to  the  post 


I 


SIV/NDLES  AND  HOAXES. 


347 


tinphysickcd,  and  the  jockey  is  not  allowed  to  openly  pull 
him.  And  so,  though  no  one  will  attempt  to  defend 
Messrs  Rawlings  &  Co.,  their  dujies  deserve  but  the 
smallest  amount  of  pity  ;  for  even  the  most  foolish  of  them 
must  have  known  that  certainty  of  winning  to  them  must  have 
meant  certainty  of  losing  to  the  other  side,  and  that  there- 
fore, even  if  the  contract  had  been  carried  out,  somebody 
roust  have  been  swindled.  If  it  were  not  for  the  greed  and 
avarice  which  mainly  direct  the  actions  of  those  who  are 
generally  known  as  fools,  magsmen,  sharpers,  discretionary- 
investment  commissioners,  and  voucher-forcers  would  ha\*e 
to  take  to  honest  employment.  This  may  seem  a  truism, 
yet  when  a  skittle-sharper  or  *' street-mugger  "  is  tried  in  a 
police  court,  and  convicted  for  having  victimised  a  **  flat," 
it  never  seems  to  strike  the  magistrate  or  the  general  public 
that  the  prisoner  simply  swindled  a  man  who  had  all  the 
will  but  not  the  ability  to  swindle  liini.  And  there  can  be  no 
reasonable  doubt— we  shoultl  rr^vich  like  to  see  the  matter 
tried — that  the  principal  supports  of  rogues  are  the  most 
grasping,  selfish,  and  hard-hearted  of  mortals,  and  not  at  all 
the  soft,  good-natured  bumpkins  that  they  arc  generally 
depicted.  We  should  not  like  to  trust  to  either  the  honour 
or  the  honesty  of  any  man  who  had  been  concerned  even 
as  a  victim  in  one  of  the  transactions  which  now  and  again 
appear  in  the  police  reports  ;  and  if  we  had  any  sympathy, 
which  is  not  very  likely,  to  bestow  on  either  side,  it  would 
certainly  be  given  to  the  man  who  gets  sent  to  prison. 

Rawlings  &  Co.  seem  to  have  managed  the  spring  cam- 
paign of  1872  very  successfully,  for  while  other  members  of 
the  same  brotherhood  had  to  drop  out  of  the  papers  or  to 
appear  in  new  guise  after  April,  we  find  our  heroes  still 
merrily  addressing  the  public  from  the  front  [lage  of  the 
sporting  papers  of  June  8,  and  as  able  to  guarantee  freedom 
from  loss  as  ever.  And  though  it  may  not  seem  long  from 
the  end  ot  April  to  this  early  part  of  June,  it  must  be 
recollected  that  within  that  space  several  very  important 


■ 


ff/sTony  OF  ADVEnrisryc. 

meetings  are  held,  and  that  dismal  gaps  are  found  In 
the  ranks  of  both  **  wrong  "  and  '•  right "  men  after  a  Derby, 
especially  after  such  a  Derby  as  Cremorne's,  which  found 
out  the  weak  spots  in  a  good  many  big  books,  and  altered 
the  prospects  of  many  a  turfite,  professional  ^.tmX  amateur. 
So  finding  Rawlings  so  well  ihrougli,  we  were  tempted  at 
the  time  to  communicate  with  him,  and  discover  the  prin- 
ciple upon  wliich  he  "  forced  the  voucher."  Here  is  his 
advertisement  of  June  8,  in  which  he  glories  in  past 
triumphs  and  feels  confident  of  fuLure  successes  : — 

CREMORNE,  QUEEN'S  MESSENGER,  AND  REINE. 
TAMES     RAWLINGS    and    Co.,    the    oldest   established   Turf 
J       advisers  in  Grcal  nritain  ;  proprietors  of 

THE  PREMIER  RACING  CIRCULAR, 
the  most  successful  winning  guide  extant. 

T^UE    PREMIER    RACING    CIRCULAR,   selected  Cremorae 
-^  and  Rciue. 

q^HE  PREMIER   RACING  CIRCULAR  of  this  day  conuuni 
^  three  certainties. 


npilE  PREMIER  RACING  CIRCULAR'S  selections  pulled  off 
-L       tlie  double  event  for  the   Dciby  and  Oaks,  likewise  Queen's 
Messenger  fur  a  place  at  4  10  l. 

'-pHE  PREMIER  RACING  CIRCULAR  hai  this  srason selected 
-^  each  and  every  important  winner,  as  may  be  seen  by  referring  to 
back  numbers  of  this  publication,  invaluable  alike  (o  large  and  small 
speculators.  The  propiictors  beg  lespectfully  to  draw  the  attention  t&\ 
that  section  of  the  public  who  have  neglected  to  take  advantage  of  thA 
opportuiuties  that  they  have,  for  the  past  three  mouths,  weekly  drawn 
attention  to  in  the  columns  of  this  and  other  journals,  that  this  week's 
number  of  the  Premier  Racing  Circular  will  contain  three  of  the 
greatest  morals  and  most  undeniable  certainties  ever  known  in  this  or 
any  other  era  of  the  Turfs  history,  namely,  the  winner  of 

THE  ASCOT  STAKES. 
a  real  good  thing,  at  a  real  good  price.     Over  tliis  race  any  gentlemao 
may  safely  invest  as  heavily  as  he  may  think  fit,  as  wc  know  that  our 
selection  cannot  be  beaten  ;  the  course  is  peculiarly  adapted  to  the 
anunal's  action,  and  the  stable  have  satisfied  tlicmselves,  past  qucsUoo 


Sll'IXDLES  AND  I/OAXES.  349 

or  doabt,  that  he  possesses  both  speed  and  stamina  to  land  this  event 
with  the  utmost  ease. 

THE  ROYAL  HUNT  CUP 
is  equally  a  certainty  for  a  veritable  flyer^  whose  merits  have  hitherto 
been  so  cleverly  concealed  by  the  owner,  that  the  handicapper  has  no 
idea  of  his  sterling  excellence.  He  is  undergoing  a  special  preparation 
for  this  race,  the  best  light-weight  in  the  world  will  be  in  the  saddle, 
and  a  long  price  is  now  to  be  had. 

THE  NORTHUMBERLAND  PLATE. 
We  have  ne^r  yet  missed  selecting  the  winner  of  this  race,  and  as  the 
cleverest  division  on  the  Turf,  as  to  whose  movements  we  are  always  au 
fait,  have  specially  laid  themselves  out  to  secure  this  prize,  the  public 
may  rely  upon  it  that,  as  in  past  years,  we  shall  again  select  the 
winner. 

This  weeVs  number  contains  full  particulars  of  these  undeniable  and 
gold-producing  morals,  in  addition  to  a  mass  of  other  information  in- 
Taluable  to  iMickers,  No  one  should  invest  a  shilling  on  any  one  of 
die  above  races  without  first  forwarding  us  six  stamps  and  stamped 
directed  envelope  for  this  week's  issue. 
Address — 

JAMES  RAWLIXGS  and  Co., 
6$,  York  Place, 

Edinbcrgh. 

Six  stamps  and  a  stamped  directed  envelope  were  ac- 
cordingly sent,  and  in  return  we  received  a  copy  of  the 
Premier  Racing  Ciratiary  dated  June  6,  which  was  full 
of  congratulations,  and  which  promised  far  more  than  even 
the  advertisements  did.  One  paragraph  in  it  was  speci- 
ally worthy  of  attention.  It  ran  thus :  "  We  have  sezrral 
commissions  still  unseUled  over  the  Derby  and  Oaks,  Genile- 
men  holding  winning  vouchers  will  please  send  them  in  at 
once"  What  could  be  more  fair,  honourable,  and  straight- 
forward than  this;  and  who  would  think  of  suspecting 
Rawlings  of  unfair  dealing?  Yet,  at  the  very  time  the 
invitation  we  have  quoted  appeared,  the  people  who  sent 
in  their  winning  vouchers  received  in  return,  not  money, 
but  the  following  circular,  which  we  reprint  exactly,  and 
which,  with  the  alteration  of  the  signature  and  the  name 
of  the  meeting,  will  do  for  any  firm  and  any  week's  racing 


350 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISIXG. 


the  reader  may  choose.    This  is  one  of  a  lot  we  have  col- 
lected at  times  from  many  victims; — 

65  York  Place,  EDir^BCROH. 
SIR. 

Wc  regret  to  inform  you  iKat,  in  consequence  of  some  of  oor] 
important  Accounts  not  having  been  settled  at  Epsom  this  week,  we 
must  unavoidably  postpone  the  settlement.  This  is  the  first  time  that: 
such  an  unpleasantness  has  i-tccurrcd,  but  we  can  assure  you  that  wc  have' 
done  all  in  our  power  in  the  matter.  No  one  regrets  this  unforl«nal«] 
itfTair  more  than  ourselves,  after  Ber\-ing  the  public  so  faithfully  forsudl' 
a  number  of  year%,  and  all  we  can  do  is  to  remit  you  immediately  we 
receive  winnings  from  the  teniporn.rily  embarrassed  Couimissioncn. 
Meanwhile,  Wc  remain, 

Yours  faithfully, 

JAMES  RAWLINGS  &  CO. 

There  is  no  boast  in  the  statement,  that  when  we  received 
the  Premier  Racing  Circular^  we  were  pretty  well  ac- 
quainted with  the  manner  in  which  Rawlings  conducted  his 
business — it  would  be  a  poor  thing  to  boast  about — and  so 
we  turned  to  the  envelope  to  look  for  the  vouchers  we  knew 
would  be  there.  And  there  they  were,  enclosed  in  a  piece 
of  paper,  on  whicli  was  the  information,  that  owing  to  the 
large  sums  they  had  invested  when  the  horses  were  at  long 
shots,  they  could  afford  to  return  odds  considerably  over 
the  current  market ;  and  winding  up  with  a  request  that 
intending  backers  would  at  once  forward  the  amounts  for 
which  the  vouchers  were  filled  in,  or  any  part  of  it  wlijch 
wotild  suit  them.  Yes,  there  they  were,  three  in  number, 
looking  like  cheques — the  first,  No.  32,323,  being  for  the 
Ascot  Slakes,  and  bearing  the  bet  of  ^^200  to  ;^ic  against 
Palmerston  for  the  Ascot  Stakes.  The  second  was  nui 
bered  36,162,  and  said  ;^3oo  to  ^£"10  Pitchfork  for  lh( 
Royal  Hunt  Cupj  and  the  third  was  39.346,  and  was 
the  tunc  of  ^£^400  to  ^20  Minerve  for  the  Northumb< 
land  Plate.  And  this  is  the  advice  with  regard  to  ihei 
given  in  the  Ciraihr^  without  the  alteration  of  even 
letter:— 


SiriXDI.ES  A.\D  //<).-L\'/:S.  351 

r//£  PITCHFORK,  PALMEnSTO.\\  AXD  MIXERVE 
COMMISSION. 

We  have  been  able  to  work  the  Commission  (Pitchfork,  Palmerston, 
and  Minerve),  at  an  unusual  liberal  price,  and  we  herewiih  ofTer  for 
yonr  acceptance,  as  per  enclosed  vouchers,  the  very  advantageous  bets 
mbout  these  absolute  morals.  Should  you  accept  the  whole  (which  we 
Strongly  recommend),  you  will  please  forward  stake  money  by  return 
and  retun  vouchers ;  if  only  a  portion,  return  same,  with  stake  money, 
and  a  corrected  voucher  to  amount  of  stake  will  be  at  once  forwarded 
to  yon.  In  the  remote  contingency  of  your  not  acceptinj^  any  portion 
of  either  bet,  you  will  please  return  vouchers  without  a  moment's 
delay,  that  we  may  havt  an  oppoitunity  of  offering  the  bets  to  other 
dienta. 

Those  who  wish  to  back  Pitchfork,  Palmerston,  and  Minerve  for  a 
place,  can  be  on  at  one-fourth  the  odds,  but  to  no  greater  amount  than 
a  j^50  stake. 

The  secret  of  forcing  the  voucher,  therefore,  lay  in  the 
fact  of  offering  far  longer  prices  than  could  be  obtained  of 
any  one  who  intended  to  pay  when  the  races  were  over ;  for 
on  June  6th,  1872,  the  day  on  which  the  vouchers  were 
drawn,  the  market  prices,  as  quoted  in  the  papers  Mr 
Rawlings  advertised  in,  were  10  to  i  against  Palmerston  for 
the  Ascot  Stakes;  15  to  i  against  Pitchfork  for  the  Royal 
Hunt  Cup;  and  10  to  i  against  Minerve  for  the  Northum- 
berland Plate.  Now  as  double  the  fair  price  is  offered,  and 
as  the  quoted  market  represents  the  odds  which  are  laid  at 
the  chief  clubs  by  the  chief  men,  who  can  say  that  the  victims 
of  Rawlings  deserve  pity?  The  ability  of  Rawlings  &  Co. 
as  tipsters  is  strangely  shown  in  this  transaction.  In  their 
circular,  Pitchfork,  Palmerston,  and  Minerve  are  their 
selections  for  the  several  races,  even  to  people  who  only 
accepted  their  advice  and  did  not  intrust  them  with  com- 
missions. They  assert  that  they  have  positive  information 
that  these  horses  cannot  lose.  Under  the  head  of  '*  Royal 
Hunt  Cup,"  and  perfectly  independent  of  anything  but  the 
private-advice  department,  they  say,  in  reference  to  Pitch- 
fork :  "  This  is  a  *  Woodyeates  moral,'  and  all  must  be  on. 
Every  now  and  then  this  influential  coterie  throws  in  for  a 


Iff  STORY  OF  ADVEHTlSfKG, 

fortune,  and  when  ihey  do,  the  good  thing  invariably  comes 
off.     Wc  have  never  missed  the  winner  of  this  race,  and 
now,  with  all  confidence,  we  assure  every  client  that  no 
better  opportunity  could  possibly  occur  of  land  ing  a  rich  And 
substantial  stake.  Some  of  our  clients  will  neglect  the  oppor- 
tunities we  frequently  lay  before  them ;  but  on  this  occasion 
as  the  price  is  so  liberal,  we  do  heartily  hope  that  one  and 
all  will  go  in  for  a  rattling  good  stake."    Then  about  Pal- 
merston  for  the  Ascot  Stakes,  they  tell  us  that   "  previous 
to  the  great  Epsom  event,  Palmerston  performed  such  a 
wonderful  feat  with  the   Brother  to  Flurry  as  to  show  lh« 
stable  that  the  AScot  Stakes  were  completely  at  their  mercy. 
Mr  Payne  and  the  owners  who  train  at  Fj'field   look  upon 
defeat  as  impossible,  and  will  stand  their  horses  to  win  \ 
very  large   stake.     Wc   cannot   recollect  a  more  genuine 
investment,  and  must  urge  all  to  stand  this  moral  freely." 
For  the  Northumberland  Plate  Ihcy  arc,  if  anything,  stz 
more  confident,  their  article  on  it  containing  this:  *' 
other  triumph  awaits  the  French  contingent  in  the  Norll 
umberland   Plate,  as  Minerve,  own  sister  to  Miss  Hervi 
is   certain  to  carry  off  this  event."      Rawlings's  prophecii 
might  have  turned  out  right  if  they  had  had  a  chance,  but 
he  does  not  seem  to  have  possessed  even  a  hint  as  to  whit 
would  be  started  for  the  various  stables,  for  not  one  o( 
the  three  selected  ever  saw  the  course  on  which  victory 
was  to  be  so  easily  obtained.     What  sorry  rogues  nuke 
fortunes  nowadays  !     It  is  more  than  likely  that  Raivlings, 
or  whatever  this  trickster's  name  was,  iike  his  own  selections 
on  tliis  particular  occasion,  had  never  seen  a  race-course. 
Strange  as  this  may  seem,  it  is  not  at  all  improbable  ;  for 
there  are  lois  of  men  who  live  by  the  turf,  and  who  are  as 
conversant  with  pedigrees  and  performances  of  horses  as  can 
be,  yet  who  know  nothing  beyond  what  they  see  on  paper, 
and  who,  authorities  on  racing  when  in  Fleet  Street,  would 
be  quite  nonplussed  if  taken   to  Ne\vmarket  among  the 
horses  whose  names  they  know  so  well. 


SPy/A-DlJSS  AXD  HOAXES, 


353 


^Ve  trust  we  have  now  made  plain  the  two  greatest 
indies  in  connection  with  the  turf,  and  at  the  same  time 
wm  the  unworthincss  of  even  the  pretence  to  knowledge 
de  liy  tiicm.  But  vve  have  no  wish  that  fL-aders,  forget- 
%  the  scamps  with  whom  we  set  out,  shall  conclude  i^is 
Ipter  with  the  impression  that  there  are  no  thieves  so  bad 
ftporting  thieves,  and  so  we  will  fall  back  on  some  swind- 
{  advertisements  of  the  general  kind,  from  the  general 

El,  which  are  not  only  as  roguish,  but  as  ignorant  of 
bjects  selected  as  the  effusions  of  Rawlings  himself, 
re  is  one  from  the  IVakiy  Tim^s'oi  a  couple  of  years  or 

RnDERS  of  'Xi\\u  IlOKOSCOrE.  —  Any  person  sending 
B  an  addressed  envelope,  age,  height,  colour  of  hair  and  eycn, 
Bet  with  13  stamps,  will  receive  within  24  houre  a  correct  likeness 
heir  future  husband  nr  wife,  and  dale  uf  marriage. — Address,  A. 
%iSSSt  2,  Drake-strect,  Red  Lion-square,  London. 

B  don*t  mind  giving  Mr  Wemyss — what  an  aristocratic 
BC,  by  the  way! — a  gratuitous  advertisement,  though  we 
that  the  first  customer  he  gets  through  our  inslru- 
lity  will  be  the  reverse  of  profitable.  Wemyss  can 
:ttcr  still  at  a  better  price,  as  other  advertisements 
lie  is  a  milder  form  of  rascal  than  Methralton,  who 
!  offer  as  follows  in  several  of  the  weekly  papers,  and 
[  not  content  with  his  effect  on  the  mind,  but  actually 
\  to  interfere  with  the  matter : — 

'NDROUS  ARTS.— Vour  future  revealed— Seven  yeais,  six 
ktamps ;  lifetime  twelve  stamps.  State  age.  Love  Ch:irn\ 
sUmps.  Medicine  fur  removing  Gravel  and  Private  disexses  in 
ays,  without  injuring  the  constitution,  sixty  stamps,  Mclhml- 
iblc  Key,  twenty-bix  stamps.  Bouk  of  Spiriln,  408  pagea, 
wo  ginmps.  Millennial  Prophecies,  Gratis.  Methralton, 
,  Daventry, 

Mother  kind  of  scoundrel,  whose  victims  are  like  those 

c  home-employment   robbers,  mostly  pox  helpless 

d  whose  villany  is  far  greater  than  that  of  the  dis- 

z 


354 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTISING. 


creet  Walter  or  the  forcible  Rawlings,  is  the  fellow  who 
advertises  constantly  for  actors  and  actresses,  who  may  be 
perfectly  inexperienced,  but  who  are  to  get  salaried  engage- 
ments through  his  influence.  His  form  varies,  but  this  is 
one  of  his  concoctions,  and  is  from  the  Daily  Telfgrapk>^ 

•piIE  STAGE.— WANTED,  TWELVE  LADIES  and  GENUE- 
^       MEN  (sigcs  iG  lo  40)  for  salaried  engageinents.     TolaJly  iocn* 
jwricnced  persons  may  apply. — Communicale,  by  IcUcr  oiUy,  encloui^ 
photograph  aiid  thirteen  stampi,  Histrionicus . 

This  is  either  a  swindle  on  the  girls,  or  else  on  the  mem- 
bers of  the  British  public  who  pay  their  money  to  sec 
acting.  It  is  i-umoured  that  now  and  again  women  moving 
in  a  certain  hemisphere  give  large  sums  for  the  purpose  of 
appearing  on  the  stage.  This  may  be,  but  we  fancy  the 
managers  are  quite  shrewd  enough  not  to  let  outsiders 
like  the  advertiser,  Histrionicus,  interfere  in  such  delicate 
matters.  It  might  be  as  well  to  ask  why  the  "promotioa 
in  absentia"  dodges  are  still  allowed  to  parade  themselves < 
in  the  leading  papers,  or  in  fact  why  people  should  be  per- 
mitted to  take  upon  themselves  titles  they  have  no  right  to.; 
Possibly  the  matter  is  thought  too  ridiculous  to  call  far; 
interference,  but  there  ate  other  qualities  besides  those  of  I 
ridicule  and  contempt  to  be  found  in  connection  with  iJit' 
following,  which  is  an  advertisement  having  no  particulailjj 
distinctive  features,  and  therefore  will  represent 
thousands  of  the  same  order  that  appear  during  the 
and  for  payment  of  which  a  considerable  number  of  spi 
ous  degrees  must  be  manufactured  ; — 


ilari]^ 

.3 


PROMOTION  IN  ABSENTIA.— Qualified  surgeons, chcmisu, do* 
ists,  oculists,  chiropodisls,  and  professors  of  music  or  arts  asjtifM 
ing  lo  a  doctor's  degree,  may  communicate  by  letter  to  Professor i 

Qualified,  forsooth  !  why,  any  one  Avho  liked  to  pay  could 
obtain  tlie  most  lionourable  degree  for  the  biggest  idiot  ia 
tlarlswood  Asylum.  One  of  the  chief  difficulties  to  bfl 
encountered  over  sudi  a  bad  business  as  tWs  is  tlu 


SfVJNDLES  AND  HOAXES. 


355 


the  sham  degree  holders  very  often  get  irretriev- 
mixed  up  in  certain  phases  of  society.  Physicians, 
ons,  and  gentlemen  in  similar  position  arc  protected, 
10  little  dealing  is  done  in  medic^il,  surgical,  or  chemical 
es;  but  bachelors  and  masters  of  arts  and  doctors  o( 
are  made  by  ihe  score,  the  recipients  of  honours  being 
najority  of  cases  men  whose  ignorance  must  be  probed 
e  it  is  appreciated,  but  whose  depth  requires  no  delv- 
vhatever.  Now,  when  a  man  of  this  kind  elects  to 
limself  doctor,  or  puts  B.A.  or  M.A.  after  his  name, 
those  who  know  what  little  right  he  has  to  the  degree 
lardly  quixotic  enough  to  decline  giving  him  the  title 
jvets  ;  so  in  a  year  or  so,  Dr  Brown  or  Dr  Jones  has 
m  a  hold  upon  his  title  as  if  he  had  obtained  it  by 
■sonal  examination  under  the  most  rigorous  system  ; 
trangers  who  are  unable  to  discover  for  themselves  the 
rthiness  of  the  pretender,  give  him  all  the  honours 
I  belong  to  the  learned.  Sometimes  the  applicant 
lies  the  professor,  and  we  not  long  back  heard  of  an 
ng  youth  who  paid  for  the  degrees  of  M.A.  and  LL.D. 
^  cheque  and  a  bill,  each  being  for^ao,  and  both 

dishonoured.  It  is  a  ])ity  that  these  two  scamps 
)t  be  treated  to  three  months  in  the  House  of  Correc- 
just  to  encourage  all  other  professors  and  practisers  of 

and  paltry  swindles. 

*re  is  yet  another  kind  of  rogue  for  whom  we  have 
■who  addresses  his  victims  by  means  of  advertise- 
E  This  is  the  sorrowful  Christian,  who  makes  the 
ssion  of  religion  his  stock  in-trade,  and  finds  it  profit- 
Vnder  the  guise  of  sanctity  there  is  hardly  anything 
lich  he  will  stick — he  is  the  foulest  and  nastiest  of  all 
oul  and  nasty  birds  who  have  supplied  material  for 
:hapter.  He  is  as  great  an  impostor  in  his  pretences 
ly  of  the  other  swindlers  are  in  theirs,  and  so  it  would 
tst  as  fair  to  blame  religion  for  the  existence  of  the 
iiponious  scoundrel,  or  commerce  tor  the  home-employ- 


356 


mSTOKY  OF  ADVEKTJSIXG. 


menl  agent,  as  it  is  to  blame  racing  for  llic  welchcr 
the  forcer.      Here  is  a  sample  of  the  whining    and  d< 
picable  hound,   compared   with  whom,   to   our  taste, 
ordinary  pickpocket  is  a  gentleman  : — 

TO  THE  LORD'S  PEOPLE.— A  dear  Christian  tradesman,  wl 
about  four  months  ago  drew  from  the  Savings'  Bank  j^6o,  ht 
all  therein,  to  jjive  lo  a  fellow  Christian  who  urgently  required  thil 
sum,  "  thus  lending  and  hoping  for  nothing  again  "  but  from  a  boui 
ful   "God  whose  name  is   Love."  is   now  in  WANT  OF  FORI 
POUNDS  to  pay  all  demands  upon  him,  ere  he  accepts  a  call  lo 
ministry  of  the  Everlasting  Cospe),  which  he  believes  his  Ileav* 
Father  is  about  to  make  known  unto  him.     A  lady,  liis  friend  in  CI 
the  Lord  as  revealed,  in  the   power  of  God  the  Holy  Ghost,   tt 
ventures  in  simple  faith  lo  try  the  door  of  Providence  in  his 
and  would  leave  the  issue  in  the  hands  of  Him  who  has  heart, 
breath  and  purse  of  men  at  sovereign  command.     The  smallest 
will  be  gratefully  acknowledged  by  ihc  Advertiser.     Address  to 

If  this  is  not  blasphemy,  what  is  it?  Imagine  the 
smirk  of  satisfaction  with  which  the  coin  of  the  faithful 
received  and  divided  between  the  dear  Christian  tradl 
man  and  his  lady  friend.  There  is  someihing  suspicioi 
jocular  about  the  wind-up  of  the  application  ;  but  then, 
an  old  proverb  informs  us,  pcoi)le  who  are  doing  well 
afford  the  luxury  of  laughter.  Another  plan  of  the  reUgi< 
rascal  is  to  answer  applications  for  loans,  and  under 
guise  of  philanthropy  and  Christianity  to  offer  the  requi 
accommodation.  By  this  means,  and  by  the  cxhibitioaj 
certain  lorms,  he  obtains  a  deposit  from  the  unfortui 
would-be  borrower,  and  decamps.  This  is,  however,  buj 
means  of  relaxation,  and  is  simply  indtdged  in  at  intei 
just  to  keep  the  hand  in  whde  more  important  busiw 
is  in  course  of  projection.  The  loan-office  advertisemei 
may  to  a  certain  extent  be  regarded  as  swindles,  especii 
when  they  promise  money  without  security.  Depend  u| 
it,  no  professional  money  lender  is  likely  to  let  out  his 
without  security  any  more  than  without  interest.  Still  h 
office  advertisers  are  not  swindlers  absolutely,  as  they 


SIV/XDLES  A.XD  HOAXES. 


3S7 


lend  money  and  to  some  extent  perform  their  contracts.  The 
papers  at  the  present  lime  swarm  with  llit'ir  advertisements, 
and  the  curious  reader  may  inspect  them  as  tliey  appear, 
as  for  obvious  reasons  we  must  decline  making  a  selection, 
which  might  be  the  reverse  of  judicious,  more  especially  as 
the  notices  do  not  come  strictly  within  our  limits.  Now  and 
again  temporarj'  offices  are  started,  generally  in  poor  neigh- 
bourhoods, for  the  purpose  of  bagging  the  inquiry  fees,  and 
with  no  intention  whatever  of  lending  money.  Their 
general  ultimatum  is,  "  Security  offered  insufficient ;"  and 
a  good  story  is  told  of  a  gentleman  who  from  motives  of 
curiosity  applied  for  a  loan  of  ^{^5,  and  gave  as  guarantors 
two  of  the  most  notoriously  wealthy  bankers  of  the  City. 
In  due  course  he  received  the  usual  notification,  that  the 
security  offered  was  not  sufficiently  "  responsible,"  and  that 
the  accommodation  could  not  therefore  be  afforded. 

This  brings  us  to  the  end  of  our  list  of  swindlers  and 
thieves ;  and  if  we  have  succeeded  in  our  endeavour  to 
show  that  the  advertising  rogue  belongs  to  no  particular 
class  or  profession,  and  that  it  is  idle  to  assume  that  any 
rank  or  class  is  answerable  for  him,  we  shall  be  well  satis- 
fied. To  our  mind,  and  we  have  studied  the  subject  rather 
closely,  tlie  advertising  swindler  is  a  swindler /^r  jf,  and 
attaches  himself  to  anything  which  offers  a  return,  without 
caring  what  its  title  so  long  as  it  has  claims  to  attention. 
It  would  be  a  great  pity,  therefore,  to  assume  that  these 
men  have  anything  to  do  with  the  respectable  forms  of  the 
professions — from  sporting  to  religion — they  from  lime  to 
time  adopt,  and  a  great  blunder  to  blarae  any  body  of 
respectable  men  because  a  lot  of  rogues  choose  to  assume 
their  business.  As  long  as  there  are  advertising  swindlers, 
some  profession  or  other  must  have  the  discredit  of  them. 

There  are,  however,  still  advertisement  swindles  of  a 
totally  different  description  from  any  that  have  been  here 
mentioned  or  referred  to.  There  is  the  swindle  of  the 
newspaper  proprietor  who  guarantees  a  circulation  which 


358 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTiSJNG. 


has  no  existence,  and  who,  when  he  lakes  the  money  of 
those  who  insert  notices  in  his  journal,  knows  that  he  is 
comraining  a  deliberate  and  barefaced  robbery.  There 
are  in  London,  at  the  present  lime,  papers  that  have 
absolutely  no  circulation,  in  the  proper  sense  of  the  wor< 
whatever;  and  of  which  only  a  sufficient  number  of  copi< 
is  printed  to  supply  those  who  advertise  in  them,  according 
to  the  custom  observed  in  many  offices.  The  readers, 
therefore,  pay  a  rather  heavy  premium  for  the  privilege  of 
perusing  each  oihcr^s  announcements.  It  may  seem  that 
this  state  of  affairs  cannot  possibly  continue  long ;  but 
whatever  theorists  may  make  of  it,  we  can  speak  with  con- 
fidence of  more  than  six  papers  which  to  our  knowledge 
have  possessed  no  buyers  whatever  for  more  than  six  years, 
yet  their  proprietors  get  good  livings  out  of  them — better, 
perhaps,  than  they  would  if  sale  and  not  swindle  was  the 
reason  "of  their  being — and  calculate  on  continuing  this 
state  of  things  for  their  time  at  all  events.  After  them  the 
deluge  may  come  as  soon  as  it  likes.  We  remember  quite 
well  an  office  in  which  six  of  these  newspapers  were  printed 
— that  is,  supposed  to  be  printed,  for  with  the  exception  of 
an  alteration  of  title  and  a  rearrangement  of  columns,  and 
with,  very  rarely,  the  substitution  of  a  new  leading  article 
for  an  old  one,  these  six  newspapers  were  all  one  and  the 
same  to  the  printers.  Now,  of  course,  had  there  been  at^y 
chance  of  one  man  buying  two  copies  of  this  instrument  of 
robbery  under  any  two  of  its  distinct  names,  the  swindle 
would  have  run  some  risk  of  being  exposed  ;  but  so  far 
as  we  could  discover,  there  was  no  desire  ever  shown  to 
buy  even  one,  the  circulation  being  exclusively  among  the 
advertisers.  A  very  small  circulation  which  finds  its  way 
in  any  particular  direction  may  often  be  far  more  useful  to 
one  who  wishes  his  notice  to  travel  that  way  than  would 
the  largest  circulation  in  the  world ;  but  the  intensest  of 
opiimiiits  could  hardly  discern  any  likelihood  of  benefit  in 
the  system  just  noticed 


SlfAYDLSS  AND  HOAXES, 


359 


Still  another  kind  of  advertisement  swindle — still  more 
distinct  from  the  general  run  of  swindles — is  that  by  which 
certain  ambitious  persons  try  to  obtain  a  spurious  notoriety, 
Their  desire  is  in  no  way  connected  with  trade,  though  as 
it  has  in  its  efiect  the  passing  off  of  inferior  wares  upon  the 
public  as  though  they  were  of  first-class  quality,  the  word 
swindle  very  properly  applies  to  their  little  trickery.  These 
men  pine  for  recognition  in  the  public  prints,  and  so  long 
as  their  names  are  mentioned,  no  matter  how,  they  regard 
the  task  of  achieving  a  cheap  immortality  as  progressing 
towards  completion.  Literature  and  the  various  phases  of 
art  suffer  most  from  these  impostors^  who  very  often  not 
only  attain  notoriety  by  means  of  the  specious  puffery  they 
exercise,  but  by  it  obtain  money  as  well.  No  one  can  be 
blind  to  the  manner  in  which  some  very  small  literary  lights 
manage  to  keep  their  names  continually  paraded  before 
the  public  ;  and  the  puffs  are  so  worded  that  the  unthink- 
ing are  bound  to  believe  that  these  rushlight  writers  arc  the 
souls  of  the  literature  and  journalism  of  the  present  day. 
Said  the  publisher  of  a  magazine,  who  is  not  renowned  for 
cither  taste  or  education,  when  it  was  proposed  that  a  really 
eminent  man  should  write  him  an  article,  "  No  ;  I  dessay 
he's  very  good,  but  I  want  men  with  names.  I  can  get 
Montague  Smith  and  Chumley  Jones  and  Montmorency 
Thomson,  all  famous,  and  all  glad  to  write  for  two  pound  a 
sheet — why,  I  never  heard  of  your  man,  and  yet  he  wants 
ten  times  as  much.  I  never  see  his  name  in  the  papers." 
This  was  the  publisher  who  is  said  to  have  refused  to  pay 
for  the  refrain  of  a  set  of  verses  except  where  it  first  occurred, 
and  demanded  that  the  rest  should  be  measured  off  and 
deducted  from  the  price  originally  agreed  upon.  So  not 
only  in  the  case  of  the  publisher,  but  in  that  of  the  public 
do  these  small  potatoes,  who  have  a  knack  of  glossing  over 
their  mean  surnames  with  high-sounding  prefixes,  render 
themselves  representatives  of  an  institution  the  real  leaders 
in  which  are  often  quite  unknown  out  of  their  own  circles. 


360 


mSTORY  OF  ADVERT/SING. 


For  every  thousand  familinr  with  the  name  of  ShaVespeare  1 
Green,  the  writer  of  *'  awfiils,"  there  is  not  one  who  cao  i 
tell  you  who  are  the  editors  of  the  leading  daily  papera  1 
and  principal  reviews.     The  anonymity  of  journalism  MM 
iis  advantages,   and   very  likely   the   directors   of    pul^^ 
opinion  are  concent  to  remain  behind  its  curtain  ;  but  it  Is 
through  this  same  anonymous  arrangement  that  the  smallest 
of  small  fry  measured  on  their  merits  are  enabled  to  parade 
themselves  as  they  do.     There  are,  we  know,  many  de- 
servedly well  and  widely  known  writers  for  newspapers  and 
serials  who  are  really  what  they  profess  to  be,  and  who 
depend  upon  nothing  so  much  as  merit  for  success;  but 
even  they  must  admit  the  truth  of  what  we  have  said,  and 
must  often  feel  very  like  the  apples  did  as  they  went  down 
stream  in  the  fable. 

It  might  be  as  well  here  to  say  a  few  wor4^  about  the 
advertisement  swindles  that  are  perpetrated  by  means  of 
photographs.     It  has  long  been  acr>'ing  evil  that  at  certaio 
theatres  shameless  women  who  wear  many  diamonds  and 
few  clothes  are  allowed  to  appear  upon  the  stage  and  play 
at  acting.     Much  training  enables  them  now  and  again  to 
deliver  half-a-dozen  lines  without  displaying  their  ignorance 
and  peculiarity  of  aspiration  too  glaringly;  but  they  cannot 
be   depended   on   to   do  even  this  much  with  certainty.  | 
Sometimes  they  sing  in  the  smallest  of  small  voices,  and*, 
few  of  them  have  mastered  the  breakdown  and  \.\\c  can-^an^] 
but  their  chief  attraction  consists,  to  the  audience,  in  their 
lavish  display  of  limbs  and  "neck,"  and,  to  the  manager,] 
in  their  requiring  but  nominal  salaries.     One  would  havC' 
thought  it  sufficient    that  such   creatures   should    exhibit 
themselves  to  the  people  who  choose  to  go  and  see  them; 
but  it  is  not  so,  they  gel  themselves  photographed  in  the 
most  extraordinary  attitudes,  and  their  counterfeit  present' 
racnts  leer  out  from  the  shop  windows  upon  passers-by  in 
much  the  same  manner  as  in  the  flesh — sometimes  in  very 
much  of  it— they  leer  at  their  friends  in  the  stalls  and 


Sir/X£>L£S  AAV  J/OJXES. 


36  r 


"boxes.  Now  and  again  we  see  the  portrait  of  one  real 
'and  justly-celebrated  actress  surrounded  by  these  demireps, 
;l>ut  of  late  what  are  known  as  actresses'  portraits  consist 
mainly  of  those  to  whom  the  title  is  convenient,  or  of  tliose 
who  combine  a  little  of  the  actress  with  a  great  deal  of  the 
courtesan.  Those  artists  whose  portraits  should  grace  the 
photographers*  show-cases  hardly  care  to  run  the  risk  of 
being  mixed  up  in  the  questionable  society  they  see  there; 
And  we  can  vouch  for  the  fact  that  in  a  leading  ihorough- 
Ifare,  of  twenty-five  English  portraits  exhibited  in  a  window 
ias  those  of  actresses,  at  wliich  we  were  looking  but  recently, 
there  were  not  five  that  were  really  what  they  pretended 
ito  be: 

Hf)f  hoaxes  which  come  within  our  scope  a  very  noticeable 
^mt  took  place  in  August  1815.  A  short  time  previous  to 
,the  departure  of  the  French  Emperor  from  our  coast  on 
his  last  journey,  to  St  Helena,  a  respectably-dressed  man 
caused  a  quantity  of  handbills  to  be  distributed  through 
Chester,  in  which  he  informed  the  public  that  a  great 
number  of  genteel  families  had  embarked  at  Plymouth,  and 
rwould  certainly  proceed  with  the  British  regiment  appointed 
'to  accompany  the  ex-Emperor  to  St  Helena:  he  added 
|further,  that  the  island  being  dreadfully  infested  with  rats, 
his  Majesty's  ministers  had  determined  that  it  should  be 
forthwith  effectually  cleared  of  those  noxious  animals.  To 
^facilitate  this  important  purpose,  he  had  been  deputed  to 
purchase  as  many  cats  and  thriving  kittens  as  could  possibly 
be  procured  for  money,  in  a  short  space  of  lime  ;  and 
therefore  he  publicly  offered  in  his  handbills  "sixteen  shil- 
lings for  every  alhUtic  fuli-grown  tom-cat,  ten  shillings  for 
every  adntt  femate  puss,  and  half-a-crown  for  every  thriving 
vigorous  kitten  that  could  sivill  milk,  pursue  a  ball  of 
thread,  or  fasten  its  young  fangs  in  a  dying  mouse/'  On 
ihc  evening  of  the  third  day  after  this  advertisement  had 
been  distributed,  the  people  of  Chester  were  astonished  by 
ftn  irruption  of  a  multitude  of  old  women,  boySj  and  girls  into 


Z^2 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTIS/Xa 


their  streets,  each  of  whom  carried  on  his  or  her  sht 
ders  either  a  bag  or  a  basket,  which  appeared  to  com 
some  restless  animal.  Every  road,  every  lane,  was  throD| 
with  this  comical  procession  ;  and  before  night  a  congrega- 
tion of  nearly  three  thousand  cats  was  collected  in  Chester. 
The  happy  bearers  of  these  sweet-voiced  creatures  pro- 
ceeded (as  directed  by  the  advertisement)  towards  one 
street  with  their  delectable  burdens.  Here  they  bees 
closely  wedged  together.  A  vocal  concert  soon  ensui 
The  women  screamed  ;  the  cats  squalled  ;  the  boys  and  girls 
shrieked  aloud,  and  the  dogs  of  the  street  howled  to  match, 
so  that  it  soon  became  dillicult  for  the  nicest  ear  to  ascer- 
tain whether  the  canine,  the  feline,  or  the  human  tones 
were  predominant.  Some  of  iho  cat-bearing  ladies,  whose 
dispositions  were  not  of  the  most  placid  nature,  finding 
themselves  annoyed  by  their  neighbours,  soon  cast  down 
their  burdens  and  began  to  box.  A  battle  royal  ensued. 
The  cats  sounded  the  war-whoop  with  might  and  main. 
Meanwhile  the  boys  of  the  town,  who  seemed  mightily  to 
relish  the  sport,  were  actively  employed  in  opening  the 
mouths  of  the  deserted  sacks,  and  liberating  the  cats  from 
their  forlorn  situations.  The  enraged  animals  bounded 
immediately  on  the  shoulders  and  heads  of  the  combatants, 
and  ran  spitting,  squalling,  and  clawing  along  the  undulating 
sea  of  skulls,  towards  the  walls  of  the  houses  of  the  good 
people  of  Chester,  The  citizens,  attracted  by  the  noise, 
liad  opened  the  windows  to  gaze  at  the  fun.  The  cati^ 
rushing  with  the  rapidity  of  lightning  up  the  pillars,  and 
then  across  the  balustrades  and  galleries,  for  which  the  town 
is  so  famous,  leaped  slap-dash  through  the  open  windows 
into  the  apartments.  Never,  since  the  days  of  the  cele- 
brated Hugh  Lupus,  were  the  drawing-rooms  of  Chester 
filled  with  such  a  crowd  of  unwelcome  guests.  Js'ow  were 
heard  the  crashes  of  broken  china  ;  the  howling  of  affrighted 
dogs ;  the  cries  of  distressed  damsels,  and  the  groans  of 
well-fed  citizens.     All  Chester  was  soon  in  arms ;  and  dire 


SWINDLES  AND  HOAXES. 


36.1 


Fcxt 


re  the  deeds  of  vengeance  executed  on  the  feline  race. 
ling  above  five  hundred  dead  bodies  were  seen 
ating  on  the  river  Dee,  where  they  had  been  ignominiously 
rown  by  the  two-legged  victors.  The  rest  of  the  invading 
St  having  evacuated  the  town,  dispersed  in  the  utmost 
nfuston  to  their  respective  homes. 

In  1826  the  following  handbill  was  circulated  in  Norwich 
d  its  neighbourhood  for  some  days  previous  to  the  date 
kentioned  in  it,  and  caused  great  excitement : — 

Si  yames^s  f/ill,  back  efthe  Horse  Barracks. 
The  Public  are  respectfully  informed  thai  Sigiior  CARLO  GRAM 
'ILLECROP,  ihc  celebrated  Swiss  Mountain  Flyer,  from  Geneva  and 
[ont  blanc,  is  just  arrived  in  this  City,  and  will  exhibit  wiiti  a  Tyrol* 
Pole,  fifty  feet  long,  his  most  astoni:>I)ing  Gymnastic  Fliglits,  never 
fore  witnessed  in  this  country.  Siynor  Villecrop  has  had  the  great 
mour  of  exhibitiiif;  his  most  extraordinary  Feats  on  the  Continent 
fore  the  Kinij  of  Prussia,  Emperor  of  Austria,  the  Grand  Duke  of 
ly,  and  all  the  resident  Nobility  in  Switzerland,  lie  begs  10 
form  the  Ladies  and  Genitcmcn  of  this  City  that  he  has  selected  St 
fames's  Hill  and  the  adjoining  hills  for  his  performances,  and  will  first 
display  his  remarkable  strength  in  running  up  the  hill  with  hisTyrolesc 
Pole  between  his  teeth.  He  will  next  lay  on  his  back,  and  balance  the 
same  Pole  on  his  nose,  chin,  and  dilTercnt  parts  of  his  body.  He  will 
climb  upon  it  with  the  astonishing  swiftness  of  a  cat,  and  stand  on  hij 
head  at  the  top  ;  on  a  sudden  he  will  leap  three  feet  from  the  Pole 
without  falling,  suspending  himself  by  a  shcncsc  cord  only.  He  will 
&tso  walk  on  his  head  up  and  don-n  the  hiil,  balancing  the  Pole  on  one 
foot-  Many  other  feats  will  be  exiiibilcd,  in  which  Signer  Villecrop 
will  display  to  the  audience  the  much-admired  art  of  toppling,  peculiar 
only  to  the  Peasantry  of  Swiltcrland.  He  willconctutlehis  pcrfonnancc 
by  repeated  flights  in  the  air,  up  and  down  the  hill,  with  a  velocity 
oJmost  imperceptible,  assisted  only  by  his  Pole,  with  which  he  will  fre- 
quently jump  the  astonishing  distance  of  Forty  and  Fifty  Yards  at  a  lime. 
Signor  Villecrop  begs  to  assure  the  ladies  and  gentlemen  who  honour 
him  with  their  company  that  no  money  will  be  collected  till  after  the 
exhibition,  feeling  convinced  that  his  exertions  will  be  liberally  rewarded 
by  their  generosity.  The  Exhibition  to  commence  on  Monday,  the  28th 
of  August  1826,  precisely  at  half-past  five  o'clock  in  the  evening. 

On  the  evening  of  the  aSth  August  there  were  more  than 
twenty  thousand  people  assembled  at  the  foot  of  the  hill,  on 


k 


364  inSTORY  OF  ADVERTISISG, 

foot,  on  horseback,  and  in  every  kind  of  conveyance.  Of 
course  Signer  Carlo  Gram  Villecrop  did  not  put  in  aa 
appearance,  for  that  best  of  all  the  reasons  that  could  be 
given — his  having  no  existence  out  of  tlie  minds  of  the 
perpetrators  of  the  swindle. 

We  had  intended  to  introduce  as  a  congenial  subject  the 
great  bottle-trick  hoax,  but  as  we  have  already  run  to  such 
length,  and  as  this  famous  piece  of  humbug  will  stand  well 
alone,  wc  gjive  it  a  chapter  to  itself. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

THE  GREAT  BOTTLE-TRICK  SWINDLE, 

AT  the  close  of  the  year  1748,  or  in  the  beginning  of 
Xi.  I749»  the  Duke  of  Montague,  Lord  Portman,  and 
some  other  noblemen  were  talking  about  the  gullibility  of 
the  people,  and  the  Duke  offered  to  wager  that,  let  a  man 
advertise  the  most  impossible  thing  in  the  world,  he  would 
find  fools  enough  in  London  to  fill  a  playhouse,  and  pay 
handsomely  for  the  privilege  of  being  there.  "  Surely," 
said  the  Earl  of  Chesterfield,  "  if  a  mvin  should  say  that 
he  would  jump  into  a  quart  bottle,  nobody  would  believe 
that"  The  Duke  was  somewhat  staggered  at  this,  but  for 
the  sake  of  the  jest  determined  to  make  the  experiment. 
Accordingly  the  following  advertisement  was  inserted  in 
the  papers  of  the  first  week  in  January  1749: — 

AT  the  New  Theatre  in  the  Hay  market,  on  Monday  next,  the  1 2th 
^*-  instant,  is  to  be  seen  a  Person  who  performs  the  several  most 
snrprising  things  following,  viz. — 1st.  He  takes  a  common  walking 
Cane  from  any  of  the  Spectators,  and  thereon  plays  the  music  of  every 
Instrument  now  in  use,  and  likewi.^e  sings  to  siirprisin;;  perfection. — 
adiy.  He  presents  you  with  a  common  Wine  Bottle,  which  any  of  the 
spectators  may  firht  examine ;  (his  Dottle  is  placed  on  a  Table  in  the 
middle  of  the  Stan;c,  and  lie  (without  any  equivocation)  goes  into  it,  in 
the  sij;ht  of  all  the  Spectators,  and  sings  in  it ;  during  his  stay  in  ihe 
bottle,  any  Person  may  handle  it,  and  see  plainly  that  it  does  not 
exceed  a  common  Tavern  Iiottle. — Those  on  the  Stage,  or  in  the  Boxes, 
may  come  in  masked  habits  (if  aijrceablc  to  ihem);  and  the  Performer, 
if  dcsire<i,  will  inform  them  who  they  arc. — Stage,  7s.  6d.  Boxes,  5s. 
Pit,  3s.  Gallery,  2s.  Tickets  to  lie  had  at  the  Theatre  : — To  begin 
•thalf  on  hour  after  six  o'clock.  The  performance  continues  about 
two  hours  and  a  half. 


iC6 


mSTOR  V  OF  ADVERTISIXG. 


Aofe. — \i  any  Genllemen  or  Ladies  (after  the  above  Performance}eilT»ff] 
single  or  in  company,  in  or  out  of  mask,  is  desirous  of  ^eing  a  reprt»j 
sentation  of  any  deceased  Person,  such  as  Husband  or  Wife,  Sistef  or 
Brother,  or  any  intimate  Friend  of  either  sex,  upon  making  a  gratuity' 
to  the  Performer,  shall  be  gfAtificd  by  seeing  and  conversing  with  thetn] 
for  some  minutes,  as  if  alive  ;  likewise,  if  desired,  he  wi!i  tell  you  j-oofi 
most  secrtt  Ihoujjlits  in  your  past  Life,  and  give  you  a  full  view  of  per-' 
sons  who  have  injured  you,  whether  dead  or  alive.  For  those  Gentle-i 
men  and  Ladies  who  are  desirous  of  seeing  this  last  part^  there  ia 
ptiv;ile  Room  provided. 

These  petformaiices  have  been  seen  by  most  of  the  crowned  Headi 
of  Asia,  Africa,  and  Europe,  and  never  appeared  public  any  uherc 
but  once;  but  will  wait  on  any  at  their  Houses,  alid  perform  as 
for  five  Poundi  eadi  lime.  A  proper  guard  is  appointed  to  pr 
disorder. 

On  tlie  appointed  day  the  lliealrc  was  crowded  to  excess, 
but  as  there  was  not  even  a  single  fiddle  provided  to  keep 
the  audience  in  good-liumour,  signs  of  impatience  soot 
began  to  manifest  themselves.  ^Vhen  the  hour  was  pi 
at  which  the  conjuror  had  to  make  his  appearance, 
arose  a  horrible  uproar,  and  the  loud  cat-calls,  heightenet 
by  cries  and  beating  of  sticks,  soon  brought  a  person  on  the 
stage,  who,  amidst  endless  bowing  and  scraping,  declared 
that  if  the  performer  did  not  appear  within  a  quarter  of  an 
hour,  the  money  should  be  returned.  At  the  same  time  a 
wag  in  the  pit  exclaimed  that  if  the  ladies  and  gentlemen 
would  give  double  prices  he  would  creep  into  a  pint  bottle. 
Scarcely  was  the  quarter  of  an  hour's  grace  elapsed,  when 
a  gentleman  in  one  of  the  boxes  seized  a  lighted  candle 
and  threw  it  on  the  stage.  This  was  the  signal  for  a 
general  outbreak,  the  benches  were  torn  up  and  everything 
that  could  be  moved  was  thrown  about.  The  greater  part 
of  the  audience  made  the  best  of  their  way  out  of  the  house, 
the  rush  to  the  doors  being  so  dreadful  that  wigs,  hats, 
cloaks,  and  dresses,  were  left  behind  and  lost.  Meantime 
the  mob  remained  and  almost  gutted  the  building:  the 
wood  was  carried  into  the  street  and  made  into  a  mighty 
bonfire,  whilst  the  curtain  n'as  hoisted  upon  a  pole  by 


THE,  GREA  T  BO  TTIE-  THICK  SWINDLE, 


367 


r 

^Hb  flag.  Of  the  conjuror  nothing  was  ever  heard,  but 
'roe  affair  gave  rise  to  a  number  of  curious  advertisements. 
^he  Duke  of  Cumberland  having  lost  his  sword  in  the 
^Beral  panic,  it  was  advertised  in  the  following  manner : — 

^TOST,  last  Monday  nighl  at  the  Little  Play  house  in  tlie  Hay  market, 
J—'  a  Sword  with  a  gold  Hilt  and  cutting  Blade,  witli  a  crim&on  and 
gold  Swordknot  lied  round  the  ITilL  Whoever  brings  it  to  Mr  Che- 
VCoix's  Toy  shop,  over  against  Great  Suffolk  Street,  near  Chearin* 

l^ftps,  shall  receive  thirty  Guineas  reward,  and  no  Qucktiuns  asked. 


[t  was  probably  a  Jacobite  who  answered  this  by  the 
lowinc; : — 


FOUND  entangled  in  the  slit  of  a  Lady's  demolished  smock  Petticoat, 
a  gold  hilled  Sword,  of  miLrtial  length  and  temper,  nothing  worse 
for  wear,  wiUi  tlie  Spey  cuhoiisly  wrought  on  one  side  of  the  blade, 
and  the  Scheldt  on  the  oilier  ;  supposed  to  have  been  stolen  from  the 
plump  &ide  of  a  great  Genera),  in  his  precipitate  retreat  from  the 
Baltic  of  Bottle-Noodles,  at  Station  Footc.  Enquire  at  the  Quart 
Bottle  and  Musical  Cane  in  Potter's  Row. 
^^^*B, — Every  word  of  a  certain  late  advertisement  is  true,  except 
^fffiie  advertisement. 

^^Koote  having  been  blamed  by  many  for  the  occurrence 
PH%his  disgraceful  hoax,  excused  himself  by  an  advertise- 
ment, in  which  he  threw  the  blame  upon  Potter,  the  pro- 
prietor of  the  playhouse,  whom  Foote  had  vi^arned  that 
he  thought  a  fraud  on  the  public  was  intended.  To  this 
Potter  replied  by  a  counter-advertisement,  explaining  the 
precautions  he  had  taken  :  how  he  had  not  allowed  the 
conjuror  or  any  of  his  men  to  take  the  money,  but  placed 
his  own  servants  at  the  door,  and  how  he  would  have  re- 
turned it  all,  but  that  the  house  was  sacked  and  tlie  takings 
stolen.  On  the  20th  of  January  there  appeared  an  ad- 
I  vertiscment  of  Potter's,  which  ran  as  follows  : — 

^B/HEREAS  a  letter  signed  S.  M.  dated  the  iSlh  instant,  was  sent 

^^^      yesterday  by  the  Penny  Post,  directed  to  Mr  Potter,   in  the 

Hay  market;  which  by  the  contents  seems  to  come  from  the  person 

who  took  Mr  Potter's  Theatre,  for  Monday  last  ;  wherein  he  complains 

of  much  ill  uiaye,  and  msi>t:>  Uiat  the  Man  can  perform  the  things  he 


368 


HISTORY  OF  ADVEKTISiiXG, 


ftdvertised,  and  would  have  perfomied  Ihcm,  and  wai  actually  ni« 
Coach  in  order  to  comc»  lm(  was  inlimidatcd  by  two  Gmllcmen  vhi 
came  from  the  Gun  Tnvem,  who  told  bim  he  would  be  taken  up  if  hi 
performed  :  nnd  m  his  Letter  he  threatens,  that  in  ca^c  Mr  Potter 
not  give  him  £22,  which  he  says  he  was  out  of  pocket,  ilui  he  wi 
apply  to  some  Court  of  Lnw  or  Equity,  for  justice  1  He  aUo  desires 
answer  in  this  Paper — In  answer  (o  which,  S.  M.  isdeiired  to  aj 
personally  and  to  i;ivc  an  Account  of  his  Name  and  pLicc  of  Abode ;  and' 
he  shall  have  such  Satisfaction  as  in  justice  deserves. 

John  PoTTEiL 

The  same  paper  also  contained  the  following  exculpa 
tion  : — 

■\17HERKA.S  the  Public  was  on  Monday  last  Kxscly  abused  by 

■  "        Impostor,  who  pretended  to  peiforni  what  was  iraprocticablj 
at  tlic  Theatre  in  the  Hay  market ;  tlie  same  imposition  some  evi 
minded  villains  imagined  John  Coiistos,  Lapidary,  to  be  the  author 
'ITiis  is  to  assure  the  Public  that  the  said  Juhn  Coiistoshad  never 
Design,  nor  ever  hired  or  caustd  to  be  hired,  ihe  House  on  any  occasit 
whatever;  and  to  caution  those  his  Enemies,  who  are  the  Authors 
this  Report,  not  to  assert  a  thing  which  they  know  to  be  a  gross  Falsitf  ] 
And  there  are   those  who  are  ready  lo  attest  on  Oath  that  he  was 
their  company  that  Evening,  and  was  at  the  Theatre  as  a  spectator 

John  Codstos. 

Many  attempts  were  made  to  fathom  the  depth  and  di 
cover  the  origin  of  this  hoax,  and  several  humorous  expl 
nations  were  given  in  tlae  papers,  among  them  being 
following  :^ 

WHEREAS  Yarious  stories  have  been  told  the  Public,  ab<nit< 
Man  and  the  Bottle,  the  following  account  seems  to  be  the  l>etf^ 
as  yet  given  of  thai  odd  Affair  ;  viz.  A  Gentleman  went  lo  him  the  sanw 
evening  he  was  to  perform  in  the  Haymatkcl,  and  asking  him  ulut 
he  must  have  lo  perform  lo  him  in  private,  he  said  ^^5,  on  wliich  they 
agreed  ;  and  the  Conjuror  getting  ready  to  go  into  the  Ilottlc.  which 
was  set  on  a  Table,  the  gentleman  having  provided  a  Parcel  of  Corks, 
fitted  one  to  the  Bottle ;  then  the  Conjuror,  having  darkened  ihc  Room 
tA  much  as  was  neccssar>',  at  lost  with  much  squeezing  got  into  the 
Holtlc,  which,  in  a  moment  the  Gentleman  corked  np,  and  whipt  into  his 
Pocket,  and  in  great  haste  and  seeming  confusinn,  went  out  of  the 
House,  lelling  the  Servants  who  waited  at  the  door,  that  their  Martcr 
had  bewitched  him,  and  bid  them  go  in  and  lake  care  of  him.     Thttf 


'i:;:-.  creat  roi'i LE-T:::rr^  Mr/::/':/ .         _v''> 

the  poor  Man  bcinf;  Lit  funist-lf.  in  bcliii;  coiiIuii.hI  in  llic  Iluttlc  an  1  In 
a  Gentleman's  Pocket,  could  not  be  in  another  Place  ;  fur  lie  never 
advertised  he  would  go  into  two  Bottles  at  one  and  the  same  time. 
He  is  Mill  in  the  Gentleman's  custody^  who  uncorks  him  now  and  then 
to  feed  him;  but  his  long  Confinement  has  so  damped  his  Spirits,  that 
Intteart  of  itinging  and  dancing,  he  is  perpetually  crying  and  cursing 
Us  ill  Fate.  But  though  the  Town  have  been  disappointed  of  seeing 
him  go  into  the  Bottle,  in  a  few  days  they  will  have  the  pleasure  of  sec* 
ing  him  come  out  of  tlie  Bottle  ;  of  which  timely  notice  will  be  given 
in  the  daily  Papers. 

Pamphlets  ridiculing  the  public  for  its  gullibility  issued 
from  the  press  with  alanning  rapidity,  and  advertisements 
of  performances  equally  impossible  as  the  bottle-hoax 
continued  to  be  inserted  in  the  papers  for  several  weeks 
after.    Among  them  were  the  following  : — 

Lately  arrived  from  Italy ^ 

SIGNOR  CAPITELLO  JUMPEDO  a  surprising  Dwarf,  no  taller 
than  a  common  Tavern  Tobacco  Pipe:  who  can  perform  many 
wonderful  Equilibreson  the  slack  or  tight  Rope :  likewise  he  will  trans- 
fiinn  his  Body  in  above  ten  thousand  different  Shapes  and  Postures, 
■nd  after  he  has  diverted  the  Spectators  two  Iiotirs  and  a  half,  he  will 
tftH  kis  Mouth  wide  and  jump  down  his  own  Throat !  He  being  the 
most  wonderfullest  Wonder  of  Wonders,  as  ever  the  World  wondered 
tt,  would  be  willing  to  join  in  performance  with  that  surprising  Musi- 
cian, on  Monday  next  in  the  Hay  market.  He  is  to  be  spoke  wiUi  at 
the  Black  Raven  in  Golden  Lane,  everyday  from  seven  till  twelve,  and 
from  two  to  all  day  long. 

This  was  also  an  emanation  caused  by  the  current  excite- 
ment, and  was  published  January  27,  1749  :^ 

'PJON  JOHN  DE  NASAQUITINE,  sworn  Brother  and  Companion 
^— '  to  the  Man  that  was  to  have  jumped  into  the  Bottle  at  the  Little 
Theatre  in  the  Hay  market,  on  Monday  the  i6th  past ;  hereby  invites 
all  mch  as  were  then  disappointed  to  repair  to  the  Theatre  aforesaid 
on  Monday  the  30th ;  and  that  shall  be  exhibited  unto  them,  which 
never  has  heretofore,  nor  ever  will  be  hereafter  seen.  All  such  as 
shall  swear  upon  the  Book  of  Wisdom  that  they  paid  for  seeing  the 
Bottle  Man  will  be  admitted  gratis ;  the  rest  at  Gotham  prices. 

And  then  the  public  were  treated  to  this,  for  the  purpose 
of  keeping  up  the  interest : — 

2  A 


370  mSTORY  OF  ADVERTISING, 

Zo/r/r  arrived  from  Ethitfjvt, 

THE  most  ironderfu]  and  surprising  Doctor  Benimde  Za 
POANCO,  Oculist  and  Body  Surgeon  to  Empwrorof  Mono< 

who  will  pcrfonn  on  Sunday  next,  at  Ihc  liltJc  T in 

market,  the  following  surprising  Operations ;  vit.  ist.   He  dcdl 
one  of  the  Spectators  only  to  puU  out  his  own  Eyes,  •which  as  1 
he  has  done,  the  Doctor  will  shew  them  to  any  Lady  or  Genttcmj 
present,  to  convince  them  there  ix  no  Cheat,  and  then  replace  t] 
the  Sockets,  as  perfect  and  entire  as  ever.     2dly.  He  desires  ann 
or  other,  to  rip  up  liis  own  Belly,  which  when  he  has  done,  hd 
out  any  Equivocation]  takes  out  his  I)owei!»,  washes  them,  and  1 
tliem  to  their  place,  without  the  Person's  suffering  the  least  hurt.  | 

He  opens  the  head  of  a  J of  P ,  takes  out  his  Brail 

exchanges  them  for  those  of  a  Calf ;  the  Brains  of  a  Beau  for  Ihoi 
Ass,  and  the  Heart  of  a  Bully  for  that  of  a  Sheep  :  which  OperatJt 
render  the  Persons  more  sociable  and  rational  Creatures  tluui  til 
were  in  their  Lives.  And  to  convince  the  town  that  no  impos 
intended,  he  desires  no  Money  until  the  Performance  is  over. 
5  guin.  Pit  3.  Gallery  z. 
jV.A— The   famous    Oculist   will   be    there,  and   honest 

F H will  come  if  he  can.     Ladiei  may  come 

so  may  Fribbles.   The  Facility  and  Clergy  gratis.    The  Orator 
there,  but  is  engaged. 

Money  seems  to  have  been  at  least  as  plentiful  as 
those  days,  for,  from  a  lot  of  other  notices  bearing  < 
subject,  we  take  this  : — 


TAis  is  tp  im/orm  the  Pubtk, 

THAT  notwithstanding  the  great  Abuse  th.it  has  been  put  n 
Gentry,  there  is  now  in  Town  a  Man,  who  instead  of  creep 


creepj 

a  Quart  or  Pint  Bottle,  -will  change  himself  into  a  Rattie  ;  which  hi 
will  please  both  young  and  old.     If  this  Person  meets  with  eno 
ment  to  this  AdN'erlisemenl,  he  will  then  acquaint  the  Gentry  wli 
when  he  performs. 

Strange  as  it  may  seem,  and  notunthstanding  all  t 
pendilure  of  wit  and   humour  tipon   the  credulity  < 
limes  that  had  been  made,  one  showman  still  tlioughfl 
wfl-s  room  left  for  a  further  attempt  at  attracting  the 
with  the  tenant  of  a  bottle.     Very  soon  after  the  greaJ 
he  published  the  following  advertisement,  which  sho 


7iIE  GR£A  T  BOTTLE-  TRICK  SWINDLE. 


371 


desire  some  industrious  people  have  to  avail  themselves  of 
the  general  disposition  of  the  time.  The  faculty  of  imitation 
is  very  largely  developed  nowadays,  as  witness  what  follows 
as  soon  as  any  enterprising  theatrical  manager  makes  "a 
hit,"  and  so  it  is  pleasant  to  find  that  an  honest  penny  was 
turned  in  humble  imitation  of  the  great  bottle  swindle  : — 

Tobeseen  at  Mr  Leader's,  the  Old Horsesho^^  iniVocd StreH,  Chcapside^ 

from  Sine  till  Tit^rlvey  and  from  Four  to  Seven  0' Clock, 

Late/y  brought  from  France^ 

A  FULL  grown  MouSE  alive,  confined  in  n  small  two  ounce  Phial, 
the  Neck  of  which  is  not  a  quarter  of  aa  inch  Diameter.  This  am  ag- 
ing Creature  haj;  lived  in  the  Phial  three  Years  and  a  half  without  Drink 
or  any  Sustenance  but  bread  only.  It  cleans  ont  its  little  Habitation,  and 
bath  many  other  pretty  Actions,  as  surprising  as  ag;recable ;  but  par- 
ticularly creates  wonderful  diversion  with  a  Kly,  and  is  allowed  to  be 
an  extraordinar)'  Curiosity,  never  before  seen  in  Euglaad ;  at  the  Expense 
of  6d.  each  Person. 

Note. — Gentlemen  or  I^^adies  who  don't  chnse  to  comc^  it  shall  be 
carried  to  them,  by  sending  a  line  to  Mr  Leader. 

Like  everything  else  of  its  kind,  the  excitement  in  con- 
nection with  the  bottle-hoax  soon  gave  way  to  fresh  topics 
of  public  interest.  The  trick  has,  however,  been  revived 
occabionally  with  more  or  less  effect ;  and  Theodore  Hook*s 
cruel,  and  not  particularly  clever,  hoax,  which  made  a 
house  in  Bcmcrs  Street  notorious  and  its  occupants  miser- 
able, was  but  a  phase  of  the  swindle  just  related ;  and  being 
so,  loses  whatever  merit  it  possessed  in  the  eyes  of  those 
who  will  sacrifice  anything  to  a  joke,  so  long,  of  course, 
as  it  is  original  and  docs  not  interfere  with  their  own^ 
comfort  or  convenience.  Deprived  of  its  originality,  Hook's 
exploit  stands  forth  as  a  trick  hardly  excusable  in  a  boy,  and 
utterly  at  variance  with  the  character  of  a  gentleman. 
Now  in  the  bottle-hoax  there  was  quite  a  diflferent  element ; 
people  were  inviied  to  the  theatre  to  see  that  which  they 
roust  have  known  was  utterly  impossible.  In  obedience  to 
the  laws  which  govern  human  nature,  they  readily  accepted 
the  invitation,  and  also,  in  accordance  with  the  same  laws, 


372 


HISTORY  OF  ADVERTlSma, 


they  resented  the  affront  they  considered  had  been  put 
upon  them.  A  moral  might  be  deduced  from  this,  were  it 
not  for  the  fact,  that  if  any  hoax  analogous  to  tlie  bottle- 
trick  were  to  be  advertised  to-morrow  in  a  conspicuous 
manner,  the  proportion  of  dupes  would  be  at  least  as  great 
as  it  was  in  1 749.     Perhaps  greater. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


QUACICS  AND  IMPOSTORS, 


QUACKS  have  been  in  existence  so  long,  have  received 
so  much  of  the  confidence  of  the  people,  and  have 
afforded  such  capital  to  satirists  and  humourists,  that 
hey  have  become  almost  a  necessity  of  our  existence,  from 
,  literary  as  well  as  from  a  domestic  point  of  view.  They 
Iso  add  considerably  to  the  revenue,  if  only  through  the 
(Dpost  upon  patent  medicines;  for  though  many  may  be 
slonished  and  horrified  to  hear  it,  all  patent  medicines — />., 
11  medicines  which  bear  the  inland-revenue  stamp — are  of 
.ecessity  quack,  and  although  many  partisans  may  endcav- 
tur  to  prove  that  in  the  particular  case  each  may  select,  this 
{  not  so,  the  qualification  must  fairly  be  applied,  if  applied 

0  anything,  to  all  medicines  which  are  supposed  to  speclfi- 
ally  remedy  various  diseases  in  various  systems,  no  matter 
rhal  the  peculiarities  of  either.  It  can  hardly  matter 
whether  the  inventor  of  the  general  remedy  be  learned 
toctor  or  impudent  charlatan,  the  medicine,  as  soon  as  ever 

1  assumes  specific  ]>o\vers,  and  is  to  be  administered  by  or 
0  anybody,  is  quack,  not  only  in  the  proper  acceptation  of 
he  term,  but  in  its  original  aignitication.     Quacks  are,  witli 

.  few  notable  exceptions,  a  very  different  body  now  from 
rbat  they  were  in  the  last  century,  when  they  killed  more 
han  they  cured,  and  when  drugs  were  compounded  with  a 
ecklessness  which  seems  quite  impossible  in  these  moderate 
lays.  Just  and  proper  legislation  has  clipped  the  wings  of 
;  impostors  who  used  to  trade  upon  the  weaknesses 


374 


mSTO/SY  OF  ^DVEfir/SIXG, 


of  liuman  nature,  and  with  the  exception  of  those  pestlfer 
practitioners  whose  advertisements  are  as  noxious  as  their 
prescriptions,  and  who  find  the  fittest  possible  media  fa 
publication,  quacks  are  no  longer  in  existence  except 
purveyors  of  patent  medicines,  pills,  ointment,  and  plasterej 
and  so  if  there  is  no  cure  there  is  also  no  kill.  Formcrll 
the  quack  prescribed  and  compounded,  and  then  he  xt; 
indeed  dangerous,  and  we  cannot  better  prove  this  than  by' 
means  of  a  remark  in  the  GcntUmatis  Magazine  of  July 
1734  about  Joshua  Wanl,  an  adverlisemenl  in  reference  to 
whom  is  to  be  found  in  ttie  historical  part  of  this  book. 
The  paragraph  in  the  old  magazine  runs:  "There  was  an 
extraordinary  advertisement  in  the  newspapers  this  month 
concerning  the  great  cures  in  all  distempers  performed  wilh 
one  medicine,  a  pill  or  drop,  by  Joshua  Ward,  Esq.,  lately 
arrived  from  Paris,  where  he  had  done  the  like  cures. 
'Twas  said  our  physicians,  particularly  Sir  Hans  Sloane,  had 
found  out  his  secret,  but  'twas  judged  so  violent  a  prescrip- 
tion, that  it  would  be  deemed  malepractice  to  apply  it  as  a 
dose  to  old  and  young  and  in  all  cases."  And  again,  in  ihe 
Obituary  in  the  same  periodical  for  1736,  there  is  an  adver- 
tisement bearing  on  this  so-called  remedy  rather  unfavour- 
ably.    It  runs  thus  : — 

Vetey  Hart^  "E^.  o( Lhu'chi'i  Inn.  About  15  Months  ago  he  took 
the  celebrated  Pill,  which  had  at  first  such  violent  efiecls  as  to  throw 
him  into  Convulsions  and  deprive  him  of  his  Sight.  Ou  recovery  be 
felt  into  Consumption. 

Joshua  Ward  was  rather  a  celebrity  about  that  time,  even 
among  quacks,  as  the  following  lines  from  the  G^ntlemaris 
Magazine  of  July  1734  will  show.     The  heading  is — 


Univ.  Spec    On  WAvn^s  Drops. 

T^ Grt^ious  ll'ijn/,  you  hoast  with  success  sure, 
-*— '     That  your  one  drop  can  all  dislcmpcrs  aire 

When  it  in  S «  fur/s  ambition's  puin 

Or  ends  the  Mfgtims  of  Sir  James  brain. 


QUACKS  AND  /MrOSTOKS,  375 

0{  wcHftdi'J conscunce  vihtn  it  heals  the  smarts 
And  on  rtjttxion  glads  the  statesman's  heart  ; 
When  it  to  wumen  palls  old  Af^ar — 's  ^tsff 
And  coo/s  Tore  deatli  ilic/rvfr  of  Ills  ///j/; 

When  /' iJ  it  can  give  of  wt/  a  Au/^, 

Make  Harriot  pious  or  lorima  chaste  ; 
Make  scribbling  B — dg —  deviate  into  «/«<•, 
Or  give  to  Pc^  more  wit  and  excellence  ; 
Then  will  I  think  that  your  one  DRot>  will  save 
Ten  thousand  dying  patients  from  the  ^ave. 

In  the  Daiiy  Advertiser  of  June  10,  1736,  there  is  a  puff 
Advertisement  for  Wanl,  which  runs  ; — 

We  hear  that  by  ihe  Queen's  appointment,  Joshua  Ward,  Eiq  ;  and 
eight  or  ten  persons,  who  in  extraordinary  Cases  have  receiv'd  great 
benefit  by  taking  his  remedies,  attended  at  the  Court  at  Kensington  on 
iDonday  night  bit,  and  his  patients  were  examin'd  before  her  Majesty 
by  three  eminent  surgeons,  several  persons  of  quality  being  present, 
vrbei)  her  Majesty  was  graciously  picas'd  to  order  money  to  be  dis- 
tnbuted  amongist  the  jKiticnts,  and  congratulated  Mr  Ward  on  his 
great  success. 

In  the  Grub  Street  Journal  oi  June  24  of  the  same  year 
is  an  article  on  the  paragraph,  in  which  it  is  stated  that  only 
seven  persons  attended  at  the  palace,  and  that  these  were 
proved  to  be  impostors  who  were  in  collusion  with  Ward. 
Th.^  Jourtta/  is  very  strong  against  the  quack,  and  the  article 
concludes  with  the  following  lines,  which  are  in  fact  a  sum- 
mary of  what  has  been  said  in  the  criticism  upon  Ward's 
fresh  attempt  to  gull  the  public  : — 

Sex'en  wcndcrful  Cures, 
One  felt  his  sharp  rheumatic  pains  no  more : 
A  Second  saw  much  better  than  before: 
Three  cur'd  of  stone,  a  dire  disease  much  sadder, 
Who  still,  *tis  thought,  have  each  a  stone  in  bladder: 
A  Sixth  brought  gravel  bottled  up  and  cork'd, 
Which  Drop  and  Pill^  he  say'd,  by  urine  wnrk'd  ; 
But  Questions,  nsk'd  the  Patient,  all  unraveM'd  ; 
Much  more  tlian  wliorii  the  Doctor  then  was  gravcU'd. 
The  Ixst  a  little  Woman  but  great  glutton, 
Who  at  one  meal  eat  two  raw  legs  of  mutton : 


fei^ 


376  HISTOR Y  OF  ADVERTISiNG. 

Not  wonder,  since  wiihiii  her  stomach  lay 
A  Wolf,  that  gap'tl  for  victuals  night  and  day : 
But  when  he  smelt  the  Pill,  he  strait  for  shelter 
Run  &]ap  into  her  belly  helter  skelter. 

There  is  no  necessity  to  take  trouble  for  the  purpose  of 
discovering  the  origin  of  quacks.     It  is  evident  that  they 
•*came  natural"  as  soon  as  ever  there  was  a  chance  for 
them,  and  it  is  but  right  to  suppose  that  before  quackery 
became  a  question  of  money-making,  it  had  an  existence, 
the  outcome  of  a  love  people  have  innately  for  prescribing 
and  administering  to  each  other,  relics  of  which  may  stil 
be   seen  in  out-of-the-way  parts  of  the   countr)'.      Some 
people  imagine  that  quackery  and  the  belief,  still  current  in 
various  parts  of  Great  Britain,  that  a  seventh  son,  particu- 
larly if  the  son  of  a  seventh  son,  possesses  medical  powets, 
had  originally  something  to  do  with  each  other.      That 
quackery  in  general  was  caused  by  this  quaint  conceit  is 
not   to  be   supposed,   yet   the   belief  in   the   seventh-son 
doctrine  is  well  worthy  of  note.     The  vulgar  mind  seems 
from  the  earliest  ages  to  have  been  impressed  by  the  nura-. 
ber  seven,  and  there  are  various  ways  of  accounting  for] 
this.     Chambers,  in  his  "  Book  of  Days,"  says  that  it 
easy  lo  see  in  what  way  the  Mosaic  narrative  gave  sanctit) 
to  lliis  number  in  connection  with  the  days  of  the  week| 
and  led  to  usages  which  influence  the  social  life  of  all  thi 
countries  of  Europe.     *'  But  a  sort  of  mystical  goodness 
power  has  attached  itself  to  the  number  in  many  oth( 
ways.     Seven  wise  men,  seven  champions  of  Christendoi 
seven  sleepers,  seven-league  boots,  seven  ages  of  man,  sevci 
hills,  seven  senses,  seven  planets,  seven  metals,  seven  sisters,' 
seven  stars,  seven  wonders  of  the  world — all  have  had  their 
day  of  favour  ;  albeit  that  the  number  has  been  awkwardly 
interfered  with  by  modern  discoveries  concerning  metals,} 
planets,  stars,  and  wonders  of  the  world.     Added  lo  th< 
above  Hst  is  the  group  of  seven  sons,  especially  in  relatioi 
lo  the  youngest  or  seventh  of  the  seven ;  and  more  cspccii 


QUACKS  AKD  IMPOSTORS,  377 

ally  still  if  this  person  happen  to  be  the  seventh  son  of  a 
seventh  son.  It  is  now  perhaps  impossible  to  discover  in 
what  country,  or  at  what  time,  the  notion  originateil,  but  a 
notion  there  certainly  is,  chiefly  in  provincial  districts,  that 
a  seventh  son  has  something  peculiar  about  him.  For  the 
most  part,  the  imputed  pecuharity  is  a  healing  power,  a 
faculty  of  curing  diseases  by  the  touch,  or  by  some  other 
means.  The  instances  of  this  belief  are  numerous  enough. 
There  is  a  rare  pamphlet  called  *  The  Quack  Doctor's 
Speech,'  published  in  the  time  of  Charles  II.  The  reckless 
•  Earl  of  Rochester  delivered  this  speech  on  one  occasion, 
when  dressed  in  character,  and  mounted  on  a  stage  as  a 
charlatan.  The  speech,  amid  much  that  suited  that  licen- 
tious age,  but  would  be  frowned  down  by  modern  society, 
contained  an  enumeration  of  the  doctor's  wonderful  quali- 
ties, among  which  was  that  of  being  a  'seventh  son  of  a 
seventh  son/  and  therefore  clever  as  a  curer  of  bodily  ills. 
The  matter  is  only  mentioned  as  affording  a  sort  of  proof  of 
the  existence  of  a  sort  of  popular  belief  In  Cornwall,  the 
peasants  and  the  miners  entertain  this  notion;  they  believe 
that  a  seventh  son  can  cure  the  king's  evil  by  the  touch. 
The  mo<le  of  proceeding  usually  is  to  stroke  the  part 
affected  thrice  gently,  to  blow  upon  it  thrice,  to  repeat  a 
form  of  words,  and  to  give  a  perforated  coin,  or  some  other 
object,  to  be  worn  as  an  amulet.  At  Bristol,  about  forty 
years  ago,  there  was  a  man  who  was  always  called  '  doctor ' 
simply  because  he  was  the  seventh  son  of  a  seventh  son. 
The  family  of  the  Joneses  of  Muddfi,  in  Wales,  is  said  to 
have  presented  seven  sons  to  each  of  many  successive  gen- 
erations, of  whom  the  seventh  son  always  became  a  doctor 
— apparently  from  a  conviction  that  he  had  an  inherited 
qualification  to  start  with.  In  Ireland,  the  seventh  son  of 
a  seventh  son  is  believed  to  possess  prophetical  as  well  as 
healing  power.  A  few  years  ago  a  Dublin  shopkeeper 
finding  his  errand-boy  to  be  generally  very  dilatory  in  his 
duties,  inquired  into  the  cause,  and  found  that  the  boy, 


378 


mSTORY  OF  ADVERTISiXG, 


being  the  seventh  son  of  a  seventh  son,  his  services 
often  in  requisition  among  the  poorer  neighbours,  in  a  waj 
that  brought  in  a  good  many  pieces  of  silver.  Early  in  lh< 
present  century  there  was  a  man  in  Hampshire,  the  seventf 
son  of  a  seventh  son,  who  was  consulted  by  the  ^-illagen 
as  a  doctor,  and  who  carried  about  with  him  a  collection  of 
crutches  and  sticks,  purporting  to  have  once  belonged  to 
persons  whom  he  had  cured  of  lameness.  Cases  are  not 
wanting,  also,  in  which  the  seventh  daughter  is  placed  upon 
a  similar  pinnacle  of  greatness.  In  Scotland  the  spaewife 
or  fortune-teller  frequently  announces  herself  as  the  seventh 
daughter  of  a  seventh  daughter,  to  enhance  her  claims  to 
prophetic  power.  Even  so  late  as  1851,  an  inscription  was 
seen  on  a  window  in  Plymouth,  denoting  that  a  certain 
doctress  wss  the  third  seventli  daughter  \ — which  the  world 
was  probably  intended  to  interpret  as  the  seventh  daughter 
of  the  seventh  daughter  of  a  seventh  daughter.  .... 
France,  as  well  as  our  own  country,  has  a  belief  in  the 
seventh-son  mystery.  The  Journal  de  Loiret^  a  French 
provincial  newspaper,  in  1854  stated  that,  in  Orleans,  if  & 
family  has  seven  sons  and  no  daughter,  the  seventh  is  called 
a  Mitrcou,  is  branded  with  a  fleur-de-lis,  and  is  believed  to 
possess  the  power  of  curing  the  king's  evil.  The  Marcou 
breathes  on  the  part  affected,  or  else  the  patient  touches  the 
Marcou's  fleur-de-lis.  In  the  year  above  named  there  was 
a  famous  Marcou  in  Orleans  named  Foulon;  he  was  a 
cooper  by  trade,  and  was  known  as  Me  beau  Man  ;.' 
Simple  peasants  used  to  come  to  visit  him  from  many  Ica^u  s 
in  all  directions,  particularly  in  Passion-week,  when  liis 
ministrations  were  believed  to  be  most  efficacious.  On  the 
night  of  Good  Friday,  from  midnight  to  sunrise,  the  chance 
of  cure  was  supposed  to  be  especially  good,  and  on  thi 
account  four  or  five  hundred  persons  would  assemble? 
Great  disturbances  hence  arose  ;  and  as  there  was  evidencCi 
to  all  except  the  silly  dupes  themselves,  that  Foulon  1 
e    of  their    superstition   to   enrich   himself,  the   p 


Qt/ACKS  Ai\D  lAirOSTO/^S, 


379 


icceedcd,  but  not  without  much  opposition,  in  preventing 
lese  assemblages.  In  some  of  the  states  of  Germany  there 
sed  formerly  to  be  a  custom  for  the  reigning  prince  to 
sta.nd  sponsor  to  a  seventh  son  (no  daughter  intervening) 
of  any  of  his  subjects.  Whether  still  acted  upon  is  doubtful ; 
but  there  was  an  incident  lately  which  bore  on  the  old 
custom  in  a  curious  way.  A  Wcst-Hartlepool  newspaper 
stated  that  Mr  J.  V.  Curths,  a  German,  residing  in  that 
busy  colliery  town,  became,  towards  the  close  of  1857,  the 
father  of  one  of  those  prodigies— a  seventh  son.  Probably 
he  himself  was  a  Saxe-Gothan  by  birth  j  at  any  rate  he 
wrote  to  the  Prince  Consort,  reminding  him  of  the  old 
German  custom,  and  soliciting  the  honour  of  his  Royal 
Highness's  sponsorship  to  the  child.  The  Prince  was 
doubtless  a  little  puzzled  by  this  api)eal,  as  he  often  must 
have  been  by  the  strange  appeals  made  to  him.  Neverthe- 
less, a  reply  was  sent  in  the  Prince's  name,  very  compli- 
mentary to  his  countryman,  and  enclosing  a  substantial 
souvenir  for  llie  little  child  ;  but  the  newspaper  paragraph 
is  not  sufficiently  clear  for  us  to  be  certain  whether  the 
sponsorship  really  was  assented  to,  and,  if  so,  how  it  was 
performed."  It  is  not  at